Warner speaks on arrival in Sydney

David Warner and his young family arrived to a media horde at Sydney Airport this evening, touching down in their home city from Johannesburg in the wake of the Australian team's ball-tampering scandal.

Warner, who has been suspended by Cricket Australia for a period of 12 months and can never again hold a leadership position with the national side, was confronted by dozens of cameras and journalists within the airport.

He and wife Candice each held one of their young daughters, Ivy Mae and Indi Rae, and the emotional couple stopped briefly as Warner offered a brief statement to the media.

"As you can understand, it has been a tough, emotional time for my wife and kids," he said, when asked if he knew head coach Darren Lehmann had just resigned in South Africa.

"At the present time, you'll hear from me in a couple of days.

"At the moment, my priority is to get these kids in bed, and rest up and get my mind a bit clear so I can think, and talk in a couple of days. Thanks guys."

Earlier on Thursday, Warner broke his silence on social media, writing the following message:

To cricket fans in Australia and all over the world: I am currently on my way back to Sydney.

Mistakes have been made which have damaged cricket.

I apologise for my part and take responsibility for it.

I understand the distress this has caused the sport and its fans.

Its a stain on the game we all love and I have loved since I was a boy.

I need to take a deep breath and spend time with my family, friends and trusted advisers. You will hear from me in a few days.

Warner was found to have been responsible for the "development of a plan to attempt to artificially alter the condition of the ball", and "instruction to a junior player to carry out a plan".

The 31-year-old was also charged with providing advice to a junior player on how to tamper with the ball "including demonstrating how it could be done".

Warner also misled the Newlands match officials by concealing his knowledge of and involvement in the plan and did not voluntarily report his involvement.

Warner will never again be considered for any leadership position, while Steve Smith (12-month ban) and Cameron Bancroft (nine months) must wait 12 months after serving their ban before they can be considered for a leadership role.

Any appointment would be conditional on form, stature in the playing group and, perhaps most importantly, acceptance by fans and the public. As confirmed by CA's Board on Tuesday, Tim Paine is the captain of the Test team.

The offending trio are banned from all international cricket and domestic cricket in Australia, but can still play and are encouraged to return to club level to help re-connect with the cricket community.

However, in the wake of being suspended, Smith and Warner have both had their Indian Premier League contracts torn up. The pair were each on $2.4 million contracts before the IPL banned them from the 2018 season.

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: Joe Burns, Pat Cummins, Peter Handscomb, Josh Hazlewood, Jon Holland, Usman Khawaja, Nathan Lyon, Mitchell Marsh, Shaun Marsh, Glenn Maxwell, Tim Paine, Matt Renshaw, 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 South Africa won by 322 runs. Scorecard

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