I won't stand down: Smith

In the wake of the dramatic revelation that Australia deliberately attempted to unethically alter the condition of the ball on day three of the third Test at Newlands, Steve Smith said he will not consider stepping down as Test captain.

Smith admitted late on Saturday evening that Australia's senior players devised a plan to use chunks of turf stuck to tape to roughen up the ball, a task carried out by the least experienced member of the playing XI, Cameron Bancroft. 

When asked bluntly if he was contemplating resigning as skipper, Smith said he believes he is still the right person for the job.

"Today was a big mistake on my behalf and on the leadership group's behalf as well," Smith said.

"But I take responsibility as the captain. I need to take control of the ship, but this is certainly something I'm not proud of and something that I hope I can learn from and come back strong from. 

"I am embarrassed to be sitting here talking about this."

The Cape Town Test is Smith's 30th match as captain since first taking the reins as cover for an injured Michael Clarke. He took over the role full-time after Clarke retired at the end of the 2015 Ashes.

While the captaincy has had an incredibly positive impact on his batting – he's scored 15 centuries at an average of 72 – the 28-year-old has endured a number of testing moments in charge.

Four months after guiding Australia back to the top of the official ICC Test team rankings, Smith's side was whitewashed three-nil in Sri Lanka in the winter of 2016, and the captain found himself at the centre of a storm after leaving the tour midway through the limited-overs series.

The following summer, South Africa, without the services of modern day legends AB de Villiers and Dale Steyn, won the first two Tests to clinch the series with an innings victory at Blundstone Arena.

The humiliating loss in Hobart saw a candid Smith front the media and express his embarrassment and a need for a new set of players that were willing to get into the fight.

What followed was a gutting of the Test team – five players were dropped and three players handed Test debuts in the third Test in Adelaide, which Australia won under lights to prevent a second consecutive series sweep.

The new-look Test team took giant strides in a short space of time and became the first Australia side to win a Test in India in 13 years when Smith led his charges to a whopping 333-run upset in Pune in February 2017.

But in a hostile, heated series, controversy was around every corner and in the second Test in Bangalore, Smith looked up at his teammates in the away team dressing room when deciding whether to review an lbw decision on the final day. 

Smith later called the incident a "brain fade" and assured it was the first time it had happened, but India captain Virat Kohli was having none of it and effectively accused the Australians of cheating, revealing after the match he'd twice caught the visitors looking for help with DRS referrals. These claims were not substantiated with evidence, however.

India would win the second Test at M Chinnaswamy Stadium and go on to claim the series 2-1, with Smith just the second touring captain ever to score three centuries during a Test campaign in India.

Despite the improved performance against spin in Asia, Australia lost the first Test in Bangladesh in August – their maiden Test defeat to the Tigers – before regrouping to take the second match in Chittagong to level the series. 

Runs flowed for Smith at home three months later in Australia's four-nil Magellan Ashes victory as England were unable to put the world No.1 Test batsman off his game.

Finally, in South Africa, Smith has had to defend his side's behaviour on and off the field as hostilities spilled over the boundary in Durban, while he was at the centre of the Kagiso Rabada saga which started on day one of the second Test in Port Elizabeth and ended on Tuesday in Cape Town.

Now, staring down the barrel of a 2-1 series deficit, Smith faces fresh questions about his character, but is adamant the actions seen on Saturday will not be repeated in his tenure. 

"My integrity, the team's integrity, the leadership group's integrity has come into question and rightfully so," he said. 

"It's such poor actions and deeply regrettable and certainly won't happen again under my leadership I can promise you."

Qantas tour of South Africa

South Africa squad: Faf du Plessis (c), Hashim Amla, Temba Bavuma, Theunis de Bruyn, Dean Elgar, Heinrich Klaasen, Quinton de Kock, Keshav Maharaj, Aiden Markram, Morne Morkel, Chris Morris, Wiaan Mulder, Lungi Ngidi, Duanne Olivier, Vernon Philander, Kagiso Rabada, AB de Villiers.

Australia squad: Steve Smith (c), David Warner (vc), Cameron Bancroft, Pat Cummins, Peter Handscomb, Josh Hazlewood, Jon Holland, Usman Khawaja, Nathan Lyon, Mitchell Marsh, Shaun Marsh, Tim Paine, Jhye Richardson, Chadd Sayers, Mitchell Starc.

Warm-up match: Australia beat South Africa A by five wickets. Report, highlights

First Test Australia won by 118 runs. Scorecard

Second Test South Africa won by six wickets. Scorecard

Third Test Newlands, Cape Town, March 22-26. Live coverage

Fourth Test Wanderers, Johannesburg, March 30-April 3. Live coverage