The entire Australia team knew about the use of sandpaper to tamper with the ball in the infamous 2018 series against South Africa. That is the bombshell claim coming from Usman Khawaja, whose autobiography, “Sabr,” is dropping some serious truth bombs through extracts published in the Sydney Morning Herald. This isn’t just a casual accusation, either: the former opening batter alleges the team had also used the ball tampering tactic in the Test right before the Cape Town incident that blew up into ‘sandpapergate.’
The ‘Discovery’ and Smith’s Stance
Khawaja, who’s played 88 Tests for Australia, is pulling back the curtain on how this whole mess allegedly started. Discussions about tampering with the ball began during the second Test of that series against South Africa, played at Port Elizabeth, now known as Gqeberha. Khawaja writes about “open” discussions held right there in the dressing room at St George’s Park, which led to what he calls the “discovery of sandpaper as an effective agent.” And what about the captain, Steve Smith? According to Khawaja, at that point, Smith “essentially threw his hands in the air and said he didn’t want to know.” This is a huge detail, folks, putting Smith in a different light than perhaps previously understood, right at the alleged genesis of the scandal.
Bowlers Denied, Khawaja Shocked
While Smith, David Warner, and Cameron Bancroft were all slammed with bans for their roles, the four Australian bowlers from that match, including current Test captain Pat Cummins, have consistently denied any prior knowledge of the plan. Cummins, Mitchell Starc, Josh Hazlewood, and Nathan Lyon issued a joint statement in 2021, declaring they “did not know a foreign substance was taken on to the field.” Khawaja’s direct quote to the Sydney Morning Herald cuts through that: “It was all of us. Not the batters, not the bowlers, not the staff. All of us.” He also expressed shock that he was never even asked to provide evidence during Cricket Australia’s investigation. “In an ideal world, I don’t want to do this. I don’t want to be the one who comes out and talks about the truth,” Khawaja said, adding, “The issue is that I genuinely thought after eight years the truth would have been out by now.” For context, Bancroft himself, in a 2021 interview, when asked if the bowlers knew, said: “It’s pretty probably self-explanatory.” The bowlers’ 2021 statement, issued days after Bancroft’s interview, reiterated their stance, claiming they “did not know a foreign substance was taken on to the field to alter the condition of the ball until we saw the images on the big screen at Newlands.” They even cited umpires Nigel Llong and Richard Illingworth inspecting the ball and finding “no sign of damage,” urging an end to “rumour-mongering and innuendo.”
Cummins Claims It’s ‘Dealt With’
So, what’s the fallout now? Current Test captain Pat Cummins, 33, recently spoke to Khawaja about the book before Australia’s recent Test series in South Africa, which the Proteas ultimately won 2-1. Cummins told reporters on October 8 he has “no concerns” about potential revelations, feeling it was “all dealt with then” and the team had “moved on.” He stated, “He didn’t go into too much detail, just basically gave me the heads-up that he is doing a book and, as always, no worries. Tell your story. It’s fine. It’s obviously a long time ago and all the investigations, everything was done back then and we answered every question a million times.” Khawaja, now 39, has put everything on the table. The “truth” he’s talking about, and whether the cricket world is ready for it, well, that’s what we’re about to find out.
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by BBC Sport.
Leave a Reply