'Guilty' Monty Panesar apologises to Steve Smith months after stinging Ashes attack

Former England Test spinner Monty Panesar has apologised to Steve Smith.

The ex-Test cricketer took aim at Smith during the lead-up to last summer's Ashes series, calling upon the English media and the Barmy Army to hammer the Aussie about sandpaper-gate.

Panesar, writing for The Telegraph, urged people to make the stand-in Australian captain feel "guilty" for his role in the scandal in South Africa in 2018.

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"Ben Stokes and the England team have got to make Steve Smith feel guilty and play on that," Panesar wrote before the Poms were humiliated in the two-day Perth Test.

"Say something like, 'I don't think it's ethical that he's the captain, I don't think he played the game fairly'. Really get into him and make him feel guilty about it. Make him feel like, 'They're probably right, I shouldn't be here, I shouldn't be doing this'.

"This is where the UK media must also focus and put pressure. Use it as a way to help England."

Smith hit back, pointing out Panesar's horror performance on the quiz show Mastermind, where he guessed Athens as a city in Germany, among other blunders.

Which led to another harsh response from Panesar, who wrote: "If I'm guilty of anything, it is having bad general knowledge. And that is better than being a cheat."

Panesar's comments drew ire from former Australian players, including Damien Fleming, who said he was "kidding himself".

Now, months after England's 4-1 thrashing in the Ashes, the 44-year-old believes he took things too far, saying he felt "a bit guilty".

"I didn't know why I went so hard at him in Australia, but it's just a build-up of the Ashes, so you get sucked into the hype," Panesar told the Stick to Cricket podcast.

"Now looking back at when we did that segment, I think if I see him, I'll say, 'I'm sorry, I didn't mean to say that kind of stuff'. I don't think he wants to see me. I haven't got his number."

Panesar believes his comments and the booing from the Barmy Army that followed affected Smith's performance during the Perth Test.

"In the first innings, he played and missed 50 per cent of the time," Panesar recalled.

"I think the situation did affect him going into the game. Normally in Australia, his play and misses are only 10 per cent. But you're right, after that, it was all dead and buried."

Smith, who captained Australia in Pat Cummins' absence, made 17 from 49 balls in the first innings of the Perth Test.

He was barely required in the second innings, making an unbeaten 2 from four balls as Travis Head blasted Australia to victory on day two.