Pat Cummins has rejected Usman Khawaja’s claim that the entire Australian cricket team in 2018 was aware of ball tampering during the infamous Sandpapergate scandal. Speaking to reporters on Friday, Cummins, who captains Australia’s Test and ODI sides, directly challenged Khawaja’s account from his recent autobiography, Sabr, which alleges that not just David Warner, Steve Smith, and Cameron Bancroft but the whole squad knew about the use of sandpaper on the ball during the third Test against South Africa.
Cummins insisted that he and his fellow bowlers had no knowledge of the tampering at the time. “When he says we all knew, if by that he means that we knew sandpaper was going out on the field, that is 100% wrong,” Cummins said. He reiterated what bowlers had said in 2021, maintaining that there was no “master plan” involving the wider team. “I did not know that was happening,” he added.
The ball tampering controversy erupted in 2018 after Bancroft was caught on camera using sandpaper to alter the condition of the ball during a Test match in Cape Town. Cricket Australia sanctioned Bancroft, Warner, and Smith with bans, while Smith and Warner lost their leadership positions. Since then, the official narrative has held that only those three players were involved.
Khawaja’s claim that the entire team was aware has reopened the debate. However, Cummins pushed back against Khawaja’s suggestion that he and others were “architects” of the scheme. “That’s complete and utter nonsense,” Cummins said. He expressed surprise that Khawaja admitted to warning Bancroft to be careful while using the sandpaper. “That’s not the Usman that I know. It’s not the Usman that I think, or that has been part of a team that’s helped rebuild this Australian cricket culture over the last eight years,” Cummins said.
Cummins said he supports Khawaja’s right to tell his story but emphasised the responsibility that comes with making public claims. “In his book, Ussie has been casual with my life and the lives of many others, and I think Australian cricket. I support his right to tell a story 100%. I’m really glad that he feels like he can, but we have to be accountable for the things that we say and do.”
The Australian captain sought to clarify that the move to ball tampering was not the result of a deliberate team strategy. “People assume you’ve gone from very legal methods to get the ball to reverse to suddenly taking sandpaper, and there must have been some huge master plan. The truth, that is not the case,” he said. “There’s no grand plan. There’s no team meeting. There’s no bowlers saying this is what must happen.”
The remarks divided opinion within Australian cricket. David Warner, who served a ban during the Sandpapergate saga, criticised Cummins and backed Khawaja’s version. Meanwhile, Cummins found support at home. His wife Becky Cummins posted on Instagram, praising her husband’s “strength and leadership” for facing the media amid the controversy. “Once again, I am beyond proud and blown away by this man’s strength and leadership. This is why I married you,” she wrote.
The Sandpapergate saga remains a sensitive issue within Australian cricket. Warner has spoken openly about the personal toll the incident took on him and his family, highlighting a lack of communication from other teammates in the years since. His comments underscore ongoing tensions and differing perspectives about what happened in Cape Town and how the team has dealt with the fallout.
With Cummins and Warner presenting conflicting accounts, and Khawaja’s revelations challenging the accepted narrative, the debate over Sandpapergate is far from settled. Warner has indicated he plans to release his own book, which may add further detail to the controversy, but also prolong the public discussion. For now, Cummins stands by his position that the wider team was not involved in the ball tampering plan beyond the three sanctioned players.
According to Yahoo Sports.
