Shukri Conrad unbothered by sandpaper-gate ahead of Australia Test series

The Baggy Greens will tour South Africa next month for the first time since the cheating scandal that rocked world cricket eight years ago, when David Warner, Steve Smith, and Cameron Bancroft conspired to alter the condition of the ball using sandpaper in Cape Town.

All three were banned from the game at the time while coach Darren Lehmann also stepped down following the ill-tempered tour, and Conrad says the matter has now blown over with the two teams having changed a lot over the years.

"It's certainly not something I spend time chatting on in our team meetings because we have to work out how to win test matches. We are hell bent on finding ways to beat them with our skills. We prepare for every eventuality but that is not part of our thinking, we just want to make this series as memorable as possible."

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While he says they as the coaching team and players have gotten over that, he acknowledged that the fans might not have forgotten the incident.

He welcomed any taunting of the Aussies during their tour of the country, but says that should be done respectfully.

"Respect sits at the heart of everything we do, even for the opposition. I'd like our fans to get firmly behind us, but I would also like our fans to give them some stick but respectfully so."

Conrad says a South Africa-Australia Test series is always going to provide box-office drama.

The third match of the series will be played from October 27 at Newlands, the same scene of those unsavoury pictures on the third day of the third Test in March 2018.