Steve Smith fired a comic counter-punch at former England spinner Monty Panesar when the subject of the 2018 Newlands ball-tampering scandal came up in his press conference on the eve of the Ashes opener on Thursday.

The stand-in Australia captain was asked about Panesar's recent comments that England should shame Smith over his involvement in "Sandpapergate" to get a psychological edge in the series, which starts in Perth on Friday.

Smith, who was banned for a year from elite cricket and stripped of the test captaincy for his role in the scandal, quickly pivoted to Panesar's less than impressive appearance on a British TV quiz in 2019.

"I'm gonna go off topic for a second here," the 36-year-old batter told reporters at Perth Stadium.

Subscribe to CNA's Recommended Read A single hand

See Full Page