Australia's cricketers have heaped disgrace and humiliation on the country, the local press said on Monday in blasting the "rotten" team culture under the current leadership. The hard-hitting commentary follows captain Steve Smith admitting he cheated by hatching a plot to tamper with the ball during the third Test against South Africa in Cape Town on Saturday. Cricket is considered the national sport in Australia and the stunning developments have not gone down well. "Smith’s Shame," screamed The Australian broadsheet on its front page, in remarks echoed by other media. "The cheating has hurt Australian cricket from helmet to boot," it said in a commentary calling for Cricket Australia chief James Sutherland to stand down. "In charge of the game for nearly two decades, Sutherland has done little to change the rotten culture of the sport at its most senior level." It added that the scandal had dumped "disgrace and humiliation" on the nation. In the same theme, the newspaper's cricket writer Peter Lalor asked: "Where were the adults in the room? "The answer to the question is, sadly, that these are the adults. Or the nearest thing to them that the game can summon."