Marcus Trescothick's admission that he used mint-induced saliva to keep the shine on the ball during the 2005 Ashes has left the victorious team open to charges of ball-tampering.
Trescothick (pictured centre), who was England's official ball-shiner during the series, admitted he used Murray Mints to produce a saliva which, "when applied to the ball for cleaning purposes, enabled it to keep its shine for longer and therefore its swing".
Former Australia swing bowler Damien Fleming is of the opinion that Trescothick's strategy was against the laws of the game.
"It is some form of ball-tampering - it is not about natural deterioration," he said.
"It is illegal, isn't it?"
Fleming told CricInfo that although he thought the home side bowled well, he always felt there was something unnatural about the prodigious amounts of reverse swing in a country like England.
"I loved the wrist release of [Andrew] Flintoff, [Simon] Jones and [Steve] Harmison, but always felt something was going on as the ball was reversing by the 40th over - especially on the grassy pitches," Fleming said.
"You're used to seeing the ball reverse early on the much rougher tracks in the subcontinent where the hard surface makes the ball abrasive easily."
Angus Fraser, the former England medium pace bowler who covered the series for the Independent, wouldn't go as far as to deem the practice illegal; but he believed the disclosure has exposed the hypocrisy that has existed over ball-tampering.
According to Fraser, who has been part of the ICC's technical committee, the tactics Trescothick employed to shine the ball have always been popular on the county circuit.
"I don't know if it is illegal," he said. "To me it is a total hypocrisy on what is deemed to be ball tampering. When Pakistan were accused of ball-tampering it was built into something that was abhorrent.
"Ball-tampering is ball-tampering whether you scratch the ball or whether you deliberately put sugary saliva on it to aid its shine so I don't see any difference between one and the either.
"There are huge inconsistencies for one side to complain about the other scratching the ball when they are deliberately sucking sugary sweets to shine the ball."
Peter Willey, former England batsman and ex-ICC umpire, who still officiates at county games, has seen bowlers using all sorts of methods on the ball.
He offers an interesting analogy to Trescothick's mint.
"People use suntan oil, lip salve, scruff the ball with finger and thumbs until they get caught," he said.
"If you apply suntan oil on you forehead or face or arms and rub the sweat on your body and then rub the ball, what is the difference?"
The English and Wales Cricket Board have decided not to comment on the issue for the moment.
"We have only seen reports of this admission," an ECB spokesperson said.
Allan Border, the former Australia captain, said Trescothick's announcement was not "earth-shattering news".
"Over the last century or so bowlers have been fiddling around with balls using all sorts of stuff," Border said in the Australian.
Merv Hughes, an Australia selector, said the incident happened a long time ago so "it's no good worrying about it".
"If he's come out and said that he's used it, yes, it's unethical," Hughes told the Age.
"Yes, he got away with it, good luck to him. You can't change the result of the Test series."
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