Chris Woakes calls for clarity from ICC on ball-tampering

“Everyone has said they try to shine the ball in a similar fashion. I think the fact Faf du Plessis has been fined, the ICC are trying to make a stance on it but I suppose there is a grey area there isn't there?  Hashim Amla said about him having chewing gum in his mouth pretty much all day. Is that deemed as wrong and as cheating? I'm not sure,” he told a news conference in Mohali on Thursday ahead of the third Test starting on Saturday, Nov 26.

“I think it needs to be clarified to exactly what the problem is. If you're exactly placing a sweet on the ball that is obviously against the rules but everything else seems to be a little bit of a grey area. That's our stance on it and we won't be changing anything we do when we go out there this week. There's always cameras on you, there always has been, so there's nothing we need to change.

“Occasionally the guys at drinks breaks guys will come and have sweets or mints just to freshen up, to keep the energy going but nothing from a sweet is allowed to go on a ball so therefore we don't do that. It's just a sugar boost really. I suppose when you're in the middle of a day there's only so much fluid you can take on board, only so many bananas you can eat, so during a tough session when the opposition are 200 for 2 the odd lolly is quite nice.”

Woakes detailed the grey area.

"I suppose so. Gatorade has sugar in it as well. We take those drinks on board and then lick our tongue and put that on the ball so that's a grey area as well. Is that classed as a sugary substance going on the ball? I don't know.

"Yes I suppose so if that's the way the ICC want to go, maybe completely ban anything going on the pitch. Maybe that's the way to go. But as I said we do what we do and we haven't been told off for it as such or banned or fined so we'll continue to do exactly what we've done in the past.”