'Imbecile' Monty Panesar blamed for 'disappointing' booing of Steve Smith by 'daft' fans

Australian cricket commentator Gerard Whateley has expressed his disappointment with the Barmy Army for booing Steve Smith as he came to the crease on day two of the Brisbane Test.

Smith has been targeted by the travelling English fans all series, following former England spinner Monty Panesar's picking at the Sandpaper Gate wounds in the lead-up.

The Aussie skipper received clear boos from the visitors as he replaced the dismissed Jake Weatherald, something that quickly got under Whateley's skin.

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"It's the only regrettable part of this series. The English presence is so welcoming, but their decision as a mob to boo Steve Smith is daft," Whateley said during SEN's radio coverage.

"It's so disappointing and they would do well to spread the word within their own camp because that's just not on.

"It's old, it's got nothing to do with them and to pick that up from an imbecile in Monty Panesar, that is so disappointing."

Former Australian fast bowler Damien Fleming agreed, adding: "It's average. A champion player, a captain of the other nation, you're kidding me (with the booing)".

Aussie fans could be seen on the broadcast attempting to counter the boos with their own support.

Panesar brought up the ball tampering saga when writing for the UK Telegraph before the Ashes, with Smith jabbing back about the spinners poor performance on the TV show Mastermind.

Smith has not been bothered by the disrespectful treatment, digging in with Marnus Labuschagne and Cameron Green in the Aussie middle order.

He came to the crease with black stickers under his eyes, which he believes will help him battle the glare from the pitch in the night sessions.

The skipper received a large ovation from Aussie fans upon bringing up his 50.