Hashim Amla fronted the media in Melbourne on Friday afternoon with the rest of the playing squad behind him, as the side went in to bat for their captain.
Faf du Plessis was caught on camera shining the ball with a lolly in his mouth, and has since been cited by the ICC with the vision now under review.
“The reason everybody is here is to stand together and show solidarity to something that we thought was actually a joke,” Amla said at the beginning of the media call.
“It’s not April, but the allegations against Faf were a really ridiculous thing, and as a team we’re standing strong. We’ve done nothing. For us it’s basically a joke.”
“Is that a tactic? I don’t know. I can’t keep repeating myself. Is it proven or what? That’s something that is new to us.
“Whether it is (being investigated) or not we’ve done nothing wrong, Faf has done absolutely nothing wrong.
“I chew bubblegum while I’m fielding. Do you want me to brush my teeth after lunch every time I come out to field?”
Amla and the media both had differing views on the issue, with the discussions picking up intensity before a South African team official ended the press conference.
The Proteas are in Melbourne to play a Victoria XI over the weekend, before heading to Adelaide for the third and final Test of the three-Test series.
