Rank the biggest scandals in Test cricket history

Rank the biggest scandals in Test cricket historyImage source, Getty ImagesImage caption, Australia's first Test tour of South Africa since the sandpapergate scandal begins on 9 OctoberAustralia are due to play their first Test in South Africa since the sandpapergate scandal rocked the cricketing world eight years ago.To mark one of the biggest controversies the game has ever seen, Test Match Special is asking which is Test cricket's biggest scandal.Ten of the most famous scandals in Test cricket have been picked out by a TMS panel and we are asking you to rank them in order of how big they were.Results of the vote will be revealed on the TMS podcast and you can read more about each scandal below the following vote.BodylineImage source, Getty ImagesImage caption, Harold Larwood strikes Australian wicketkeeper Bert Oldfield in the head with a bouncer during the third day of the the Third Test at the Adelaide Oval in 1933On the 1932-33 tour of Australia, England needed a plan to stop the great Donald Bradman. Douglas Jardine, England's charismatic captain, came up with a tactic that would change the game forever: Bodyline.Jardine instructed his fast bowlers, Harold Larwood and Bill Voce, to bowl hostile, short-pitched deliveries at the Australians. In an era when batters wore no upper-body protection, England's method was criticised as unsporting and against the spirit of cricket.The bad blood between the two teams escalated to the administrators of the game in each country and even turned into a diplomatic incident, threatening to strain relationships between governments.England won the series 4-1, a result almost lost in the infamy of the entire episode.The D'Oliveira AffairImage source, Getty ImagesImage caption, Basil D'Oliveira played 44 Tests for EnglandIn 1968, England were due to tour South Africa, a country then operating under a system of racial segregation known as apartheid.In line for selection was Basil D'Oliveira, a mixed-race all-rounder born in South Africa, who had emigrated to and qualified to play for England.Despite scoring 158 in the final Test of the summer against Australia, D'Oliveira was initially left out of the England squad, only to then be called in as a replacement for the injured Tom Cartwright. His inclusion was criticised in South Africa and the tour was called off little more than a week later.South Africa played one more Test series – at home to Australia the following year – then spent two decades out of international cricket. In the intervening time, a number of rebel tours to South Africa took place, with huge consequences for the players involved.'George Davis is innocent'Image source, Getty ImagesImage caption, Australia's Ian Chappell (left) and England captain Tony Greig examine the damaged Headingley wicket in 1975Australia were defending the Ashes in England in 1975. The series was shortened to four Tests because of the inaugural men's World Cup earlier in the summer.At 1-0 down, England had a huge chance to level the series in the third Test at Headingley. At the close of the fourth day, Australia had reached 220-3 in pursuit of 445. A thrilling finish was in prospect.Overnight, the pitch was vandalised. Holes were dug and oil was poured on the surface. The damage was caused by supporters of George Davis, who had been jailed for armed robbery the previous year. "George Davis is innocent" was written on the wall around the ground.The Test was abandoned as a draw, meaning Australia retained the urn and ruining the prospect of a decider at The Oval.Davis was released in 1976 when his conviction was adjudged to be unsafe, and it was overturned entirely on appeal in 2011.World Series CricketImage source, Getty ImagesImage caption, West Indies players sit on a balcony during World Series CricketIn the mid-1970s, Kerry Packer, one of the richest men in Australia, wanted to boost the ratings of his Channel Nine TV network with live sport. He approached the Australian Cricket Board with a lucrative offer, one that was rejected in favour of keeping live cricket on the Australian Broadcasting Corporation.So, Packer created his own product: World Series Cricket. The plan was simple – Packer recruited the best players in the world to stage his own matches.Most significant was the signing of England captain Tony Greig, who effectively acted as an agent. Greig was stripped of the captaincy and Australia's 1977 Ashes tour of England was overshadowed by the emergence of Packer's outfit.World Series Cricket lasted for two seasons – 1977-78 and 1978-79 – comprising one-day matches and 'SuperTests' between teams representing Australia, West Indies and a World XI. Meanwhile, traditional cricket rolled on. In 1978-79, England embarked on Ashes tour they won 5-1, beating an Australia side decimated by Packer defections.Later in 1979, a truce between Packer and the board was brokered, and Nine earned TV rights to the game in Australia. Many of the innovations of WSC – coloured clothing and day-night cricket among them – shaped the game as we know it today.Mike Gatting and Shakoor RanaImage source, Getty ImagesImage caption, Mike Gatting, centre, later said he regretted the Shakoor Rana incidentEngland had already been frustrated by the decisions of a home umpire in losing the first Test on their tour of Pakistan in late 1987.Shakoor Rana was appointed to stand in the second Test, much to England's displeasure. Rana had previously clashed with New Zealand skipper Jeremy Coney.On the second day in Faisalabad, Rana was at square leg when he appeared to halt the game to object to one of England captain Mike Gatting's field placements.Gatting was furious, confronting the official in footage that has been replayed over and over. The following day, Rana refused to take the field, leaving England waiting in the middle for play that did not get under way.The match eventually resumed on the fourth day and the cancellation of the tour was narrowly avoided, but mistrust and ill-feeling between England and Pakistan lingered for years later.Dirt in the pocketIn the mid-1990s, ball-tampering was the most emotive topic in Test cricket. In 1992, Pakistan's tour of England was overshadowed by allegations and innuendo. Two years later, the England captain found himself at the centre of a similar row.In the Lord's Test against South Africa, Michael Atherton was caught by TV cameras rubbing dirt on the ball. Atherton's explanation was that he was trying to maintain the condition of the ball, rather than alter it. Trouble was, he told the match referee he was using the dirt to keep his hands dry.The story was headline news, topped off by a chaotic news conference when Atherton was, in his own words, "fed to the lions". Atherton considered resigning, but escaped with a fine and remained captain for another four years.Hansie CronjeImage source, Getty ImagesImage caption, South African newspapers reacted with shock and dismay over the Hansie Cronje scandalFormer South Africa captain Hansie Cronje was one of the most revered figures in his country. He was even close to Nelson Mandela.Yet he became involved with Indian bookmakers and gradually made suggestions to fix matches, or parts of them. Cronje targeted impressionable team-mates to become part of his scheme.Cronje's most infamous plot came in a dead-rubber fifth Test against England at Centurion Park in 2000. The match had been badly affected by rain, but Cronje was adamant the teams should do all they could to ensure it did not end in a draw.He negotiated with England skipper Nasser Hussain for both teams to forfeit an innings, leaving the tourists with a final-day run-chase, which they completed. England were unaware, but Cronje had engineered a result.Cronje confessed months later and would eventually give public testimony at the King Commission. He was banned from cricket for life and was killed in a plane crash in 2002.The forfeited TestImage source, Getty ImagesImage caption, England players pick a new ball during the 2006 Test against PakistanThis scandal had roots in past attitudes towards Pakistan cricket and ball-tampering.Pakistan had already lost the series in England in 2006, yet were cruising to victory in the final Test at The Oval.However, Australian umpire Darrel Hair, himself no stranger to controversy, asked for the ball to be changed midway through the afternoon session on the fourth day. Ball-tampering was suggested and Pakistan refused to play after tea.Confusion reigned. Pakistan captain Inzamam-ul-Haq relented and tried to resume the Test, but by then umpire Hair and partner Billy Doctrove had awarded the match to England.Years of back-and-forth followed, with the result first changed to a draw, then reverted back to an England win. Inzamam was cleared of ball-tampering, while Hair served a ban from officiating. The match remains the only Test in history to have been forfeited.Pakistan spot-fixingImage source, Getty ImagesImage caption, Salman Butt leaves court during the Pakistan spot-fixing trialNo-balls deliberately bowled in the 2010 Lord's Test between England and Pakistan ultimately resulted in three of the tourists' players spending time in jail.A sting by the News of the World newspaper paid a middleman - cricket agent Mazhar Majeed - for details of three no-balls.Majeed arranged for Pakistan captain Salman Butt and pace bowlers Mohammad Asif and Mohammad Amir to execute the no-balls, then the News of the World broke the story while the Test was still ongoing.All three players received bans from the International Cricket Council, then were found guilty of conspiracy to cheat at gambling and conspiracy to accept corrupt payments.Butt was sentenced to two and a half years in prison, Asif a year and Amir, who was aged only 17 at the time of the no-ball plot, six months.SandpapergateImage source, Getty ImagesImage caption, Cameron Bancroft is spoken to by the umpires during the 'sandpapergate' TestIn the third Test of Australia's bad-tempered tour of South Africa in 2018, TV cameras picked up touring fielder Cameron Bancroft appearing to rub the ball with a small, yellow object.Bancroft, along with captain Steve Smith, admitted to attempting to alter the condition of the ball. Days later, it was revealed Bancroft was using sandpaper.The outcry engulfed the Australian team and the entire nation. Prime minister Malcolm Turnbull said he was "bitterly disappointed".Smith was sacked, along with his vice-captain David Warner, the architect of the plot. All of Smith, Warner and Bancroft served lengthy bans from playing for Australia.Coach Darren Lehmann was cleared of having knowledge of the ball-tampering, but he too resigned.More on this story