Peter Handscomb has denied playing any part in the Australian cricket team's ball-tampering scandal.
He insists vision of him appearing to run a message out to Cameron Bancroft has been drastically "edited".
Video of the incident appears to show coach Darren Lehmann using a walkie-talkie to contact 12th man Handscomb after noticing Cameron Bancroft's attempt to scuff the ball with sandpaper during the Cape Town Test in March.
Hanscomb then appears to run a message out to Bancroft, widely alleged at the time to be from Lehmann.
But speaking publicly for the first time since the incident - which culminated in lengthy bans for Bancroft, captain Steve Smith and vice-captain David Warner for their roles in the controversy - the batsman says it's not as it seems.
"It's actually amazing how much the media edited it, it shows me on the walkie-talkie then running out talking to Cam," he told reporters on Friday.
Handscomb says his walkie-talkie conversation with Lehmann was more than 20 minutes before he came onto the field, which he only did when another player had to use the bathroom.
"I get put into a catching position next to Cam ... and literally was just trying to have a joke with him, there was nothing else mate - so all this build up about me trying to do something there was just, it wasn't there," he said.
Handscomb was reluctant to elaborate on the details of the conversation he had with Lehmann on the walkie-talkie, saying it had already been well documented.
Speaking before next month's Australia A tour of India, Handscomb said the squad was trying to move on from the scandal.
"Obviously it wasn't a great time but that's gone now, we've got to deal with what we've got and we've got some amazing players still on the squad," he said.
Australian Associated Press
