Michael Clarke criticises Steve Smith and Australia's unacceptable' DRS tactics

Bengaluru: Australia captain Steve Smith faced calls for disciplinary action Wednesday after a row over alleged cheating overshadowed the second Test against India, with his predecessor Michael Clarke accusing him of "unacceptable" behaviour.

Former Australia captain, Clarke, said that it was Peter Handscombe who had suggested Steve Smith to turn around while making it clear that he finds this move "unacceptable".

"If what Virat Kohli is saying is true and Australia are using their support staff to help them decide on a DRS decision then that's not on, that's unacceptable," Clarke told India Today channel.

"My concern and my worry is that when you look at the footage of what happened with Steve Smith, Peter Handscomb actually suggests to Steve Smith to turn around and have a look at the support staff. If it is only a one-off, I don't think that would have happened,” added Clarke.

"The fact that Peter Handscomb is even thinking about telling the Australian captain to turn around and look to the support staff, I've got my concerns," concluded Clarke.

Meanwhile, Handscomb tried to deflect blame from his captain, writing on Twitter that it was "my fault and was unaware of the rule", saying the row "shouldn't take anything away from what was an amazing game".

The row over DRS is the latest in a series of spats between the two teams in recent years, including in the 2008 Sydney Test when the Indian spinner Harbhajan Singh was accused of calling Andrew Symonds a monkey.

Kohli himself was fined 50 percent of his match fee three years ago for bringing the game into disrepute after flashing the middle finger in response to barracking from the crowd in the Sydney Test.

The third Test begins in Ranchi on March 16 before the series finale in Dharamsala at the end of the month.