South Africa’s Faf du Plessis says he’s not a cheat but did rub a cricket ball “too close” to a zip on his trousers.

The action led to the batsman’s fine for ball tampering in the second test against Pakistan.

In his column on the SuperSport website, Du Plessis denied he was trying to cheat, writing “that’s not the kind of person I am”.

However, he says “I’ll be the first to admit that I was working it far too close to my zip”.

Du Plessis was fined half his match fee after being caught on TV working the ball over the pocket zip, a punishment criticised by Pakistan officials as too lenient.

He says the ball was not affected “and that’s why I think my penalty was not as harsh”.