Acting captain Tim Paine said Steve Smith and Cameron Bancroft are "struggling" with the "enormity" of the ball-tampering scandal after the revelations have up-ended Australia's tour of South Africa.
The International Cricket Council (ICC) has handed down a one-Test suspension to Australian captain Steve Smith, while opener Cameron Bancroft has been docked 75 per cent of his match fee for the ball tampering scandal that has rocked the sport.
Smith admitted at a press conference on day three of the third Test on Sunday that the team's leadership group authorised a plan for Bancroft to tamper with the ball to gain an advantage.
Bancroft was caught on camera with tape, which he attempted to hide from the umpires, designed to interfere with the ball in order to create reverse-swing.
Steve Smith (capt) and Cameron Bancroft (L) of Australia. Photo: AAP Source: AAP
Since the fallout, interim captain Paine said the reality of the situation is "starting to sink in".
"They're not great. It's been a horrible 24 hours, they're struggling but probably the reality and the enormity of what's happened is starting to sink in," Paine told reporters.
"Maybe some did [underestimate how bad it was]. I don't think we all would have expected this to be as big as it has been and particularly the fallout that we have seen from back home."
Steve Smith's captaincy hangs in the balance after he was handed the suspension and fined 100 per cent of his match fee by the ICC for authorising premeditated cheating.
Cricket Australia (CA) is investigating the incident "with the urgency that it demands" before making a decision.
Head of integrity, Iain Roy, and performance manager Pat Howard, have been flown to South Africa to gather information.
Smith has accepted the ICC charge and will miss the fourth Test against South Africa.
The ICC's decision comes after Smith and vice-captain David Warner stood down from their leadership roles for the remainder of the third Test.
Former captain Michael Clarke told Channel Nine's Today show that he hoped over time the Australian public forgave Smith.
"This can never happen again...I think this has to be Cricket Australia's number one focus, this can never happen again in this great game of cricket," Clarke said.
"The other thing, which I know is really hard for a lot of people and will take a lot of time, is forgiveness. I do feel for Steve Smith. 100 per cent he has made a major mistake, him with a lot of people will have to suffer the consequences and I think that is fair enough. But I think it is important, over time, we forgive as well.
"I couldn't think of anything worse than Steve Smith coming back to Australia being too scared or too embarrassed to be able to leave his house."
Smith had previously said he would not relinquish his role as captain over the saga, but his decision to step down mid-Test shocked legendary leg-spinner Shane Warne and West Indies great Michael Holding.
“I just don’t understand the decision today,” Warne said during the commentary.
“I would have waited to the end of the Test match before any of that stuff and then whatever the consequences, however harsh they might be or whatever they are they have to cop it.”
It was sandpaper, not sticky tape, that Bancroft worked on the ball. Source: Fox Sports
“If you see everything that James Sutherland was saying, his thing was let’s not jump to conclusions, we’ve got an investigation,” Warne added.
“I’ve always been taught if in doubt do nought. Sleep a day or two for this Test match to (finish), then I think everyone will think a little bit clearer because we’re all speaking on emotion, anger, all those types of things we’re still feeling."
Holding said he was "shocked" that they stepped down during the Test.
“I expected them to take responsibility for it and do something but not during a Test match. This is now going to put the Australian team off totally," he said.
Other former players and broadasters demanded harsher punishment with former England captain Michael Vaughan labelling the ICC's decision to penalise Smith with a one-Test suspension as "pathetic".
Many in the cricket world, including Kevin Pietersen, agreed with the sentiment and called for swift action against the players involved.
Australia's cricketing culture under the supervision of coach Darren Lehmann is facing renewed scrutiny as the fallout from the ball-tampering scandal continues.
According to Smith, Lehmann and the rest of the coaching staff were not privy to the plan for Bancroft to use sticky tape in an illegal attempt to change the condition of the ball.
Lehmann is nonetheless a lightning rod for criticism among an Australian public increasingly fed-up with the team's behaviour.
An often-jovial figure who has sought to lighten up the Australian dressing room, Lehmann has also been accused of allowing an aggressive team mentality to go largely unchecked.
During the 2013 Ashes - his first series in charge - Lehmann accused Stuart Broad of "blatant cheating" for refusing to walk when he edged a ball to the keeper during the first Test.
"From my point of view, I just hope the Australian public give it to him right from the word go for the whole summer and I hope he cries and he goes home," Lehmann said ahead of the home Ashes series later that year.
Australia's 2014 tour of South Africa was marred by sledging which led Faf du Plessis to liken the visitors to a "pack of dogs", while last year's tour of India and the most recent Ashes series were also spiteful affairs.
David Warner was more recently sanctioned for an enraged off-field confrontation with Quinton de Kock, while Nathan Lyon copped a fine for his 'ball drop' send-off of AB de Villiers.
The incidents in Durban prompted a public rebuke from Cricket Australia chief James Sutherland, who admitted the Australian players had not acted within the spirit of the game.
Sutherland noted at the time that Australia had been far from the worst offenders under the ICC Code of Conduct during Smith's captaincy.
That will count for little in light of the far more serious transgressions that have come to light in Cape Town.
Former Test captain Michael Clarke said the revelations would reflect poorly on Lehmann, who will finish up in the job after next year's Ashes series, regardless of whether he knew about the plan.
"My fear is, if that's the case (that he didn't know), then the Australian head coach hasn't got control of this Australian team," Clarke said on the Nine Network.
"And if he does know about it, then he's as accountable as anybody else."
South Africa have defeated Australia by 322 runs, inflicting a stunning collapse of 10-50 on day four of the third Test in Cape Town.
- With AAP
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