Lehmann tweeted "your (sic) better than that?" to British journalist Alison Mitchell after she posted a photo of sandpaper four and six cards being handed out to the crowd.

The pieces of "Australian ball-tampering grade sandpaper" were part of an advertising stunt and it's understood 5000 sandpaper cards were confiscated in the ground.

It was an unsubtle reference to Australia's sandpaper ball-tampering scandal as they played their first international match since that ill-fated South African tour which led to long bans on skipper Steve Smith, vice-captain David Warner and batsman Cameron Bancroft.

Rookie Australian captain Tim Paine admitted before the game that his new-look team expected to cop plenty of flak from the English crowds.

Paine and Shaun Marsh were the only two players in the starting line-up that played in the infamous Cape Town Test, and the skipper indicated there hadn't been much ribbing from the sell-out crowd aimed at his players.

"I'm pretty lucky being in the middle I can't hear anything," Paine said.

"I haven't spoken to the (other guys) but there wasn't any talk of copping too much stick out there which is nice.

"Maybe if we win a few games they might."

Australian Associated Press