Australia captain Pat Cummins denies involvement in ‘Sandpapergate’ scandal

What the report says

Australia captain Pat Cummins has publicly rejected claims in Usman Khawaja’s newly published autobiography that the entire team knew about the 2018 ball-tampering scandal, known as Sandpapergate. Speaking in Sydney on Friday, Cummins said he did not know about the plan to use sandpaper on the ball during the Test series in South Africa and described suggestions that he and others were involved in a wider scheme as false. He also said there was no team meeting or collective plan to use illegal methods.

Khawaja’s book has revived scrutiny of the scandal, which led to bans for then-captain Steve Smith and vice-captain David Warner, while opening batter Cameron Bancroft was also suspended. Al Jazeera, citing AFP and Reuters, reported that Khawaja has argued the whole squad was aware of the plan and that his remarks prompted calls for a fresh investigation, although Cricket Australia’s chief has already ruled that out. Cummins said he had been consistently truthful since the 2018 review and would not pursue legal action, even though he believes some of the allegations could be defamatory.

Cummins also strongly rejected Khawaja’s suggestion that his background and skin colour had affected his chances of becoming captain, calling that claim the most serious of the week. Warner later defended Khawaja and said the punished players had already paid a heavy price, underscoring how the long-running fallout from the incident continues to divide former teammates and reopen debate around accountability in Australian cricket.