Australian batsman Steve Smith breaks silence on 'scuffgate' controversy

Speaking on the episode, Smith stated he is appalled by the reactions.

"It's something I do in games to visualize where we are bowling, how the batter is playing our bowlers, and then out of habit I always mark center," he said.

"It's such a shame that this and other events have taken away from what was a great batting performance by India yesterday."

On Day 5, the likes of Rishabh Pant and Cheteshwar Pujara brought back India in the hunt with respective knocks.

After their departure, Vihari and Ashwin helped India steal a historic draw.

However, in footage that surfaced on social media after the game, Smith was caught scuffing Rishabh Pant's crease mark.

While doing so, Smith was also found to be doing shadow batting.

After the footage became viral, the Indian fans and experts came down hard on him, slamming Smith's actions.

Former players Virender Sehwag and Michael Vaughan were quick to take a dig at the Australian batsman.

Notably, this not the first time Australia's premier batsman has landed into a controversy.

He has been involved in the infamous "ball-tampering" scandal and "brain-fade" moment in past.

After the matter was highlighted to a great extent, the Australian skipper came to Smith's defense.

"There's no way in the world he was trying to change Pant's guard. It's just one of Smithy's things that he does. Now that it's come up, it's something he might have to look at because of the perception of it," said Paine.