Cummins rejects Khawaja's claim that entire team knew of sandpaper
The Australian captain says he did not know about the ball tampering plan in Cape Town and calls the accusation 'utter nonsense.'
By Tomas Rahman ·
Former Australian cricket captain Pat Cummins spoke publicly for the first time on Friday to address new allegations from Usman Khawaja regarding the 2018 Test series in South Africa. Cummins denied knowing that sandpaper was being used to tamper with the ball during the third Test in Cape Town.
Khawaja recently published his autobiography, Sabr, in which he claimed that the entire squad, not just the three players who received bans, was aware of the plan. Cummins told reporters in Sydney that Khawaja's statement that everyone knew sandpaper was going out in the field was 100 per cent wrong. He stated that he had maintained this position consistently for the last eight years.
Cummins described Khawaja's suggestion that he and other team members were architects of the scheme as complete and utter nonsense. He noted that Khawaja made claims that were far more serious than simply possessing knowledge of the equipment.
The dispute follows a 2021 joint statement from four bowlers from the Newlands Test, including Mitchell Starc, Josh Hazlewood, and Nathan Lyon. They denied knowing that a foreign substance had been taken onto the field to doctor the ball. Starc said earlier this week that his recollection of events had not changed.
Mitchell Marsh, who played in the Cape Town Test before becoming vice-captain in 2018, said on Thursday that he had moved on and was not willing to share his views. Marsh was elevated to the leadership group after captain Steve Smith and leadership group member David Warner received 12-month bans for their roles in the tampering incident.
Warner took to social media on Monday night to assert that Khawaja's revelations were 100 per cent correct. He also suggested that Australia's coach at the time, Darren Lehmann, either knew about the plan or should have known. Chadd Sayers, a backup bowler who played in the final match of the series in Johannesburg, is the only player this week to support the claims. Sayers told Fairfax newspapers that he believed Khawaja and noted that he was not interviewed during the Cricket Australia investigation in South Africa.
Cricket Australia remains adamant that it will not reopen the investigation into the incident.
