Listen, the "everybody does it" excuse doesn't wash when it comes to performance enhancing drugs in athletics, and doesn't do it in cricket either. Smith is far more culpable here than the rest on the following grounds:
1) Systematic premeditation among the whole group. This wasn't a lone wolf or one guy going out on his own.
2) Cover up and lying to umpires on the spot.
3) You can at least say using minty saliva is subtle. This is anything but subtle, and therefore is the most obvious form of ball tampering since Afridi biting a cricket ball.
4) Him getting the most junior member in the side - Bancroft to carry out his deed.
5) A press conference admission.
Let aside the fact that the Aussie media have been extremely sanctimonious in the past about others tampering, spot fixing etc, and BS-ing about not crossing the line and playing the game in the right spirit blah blah.
Also, cricket is much more popular in Australia than some other countries and its the national sport. The Australian Test Captain is held in incredible esteem...barely any in England would have even heard of Alistair Cook. The legacy here comes all the way from Allan Border, Mark Taylor, Steve Waugh, Ponting, Clarke....and now...Smith.
