Cummins Responds to Khawaja’s Upcoming Book on Ball-Tampering Scandal

Australia captain Pat Cummins has said he is not concerned about potential revelations surrounding the 2018 ball-tampering scandal in the upcoming autobiography of his former teammate Usman Khawaja, scheduled for publication in November.
According to reports, Khawaja recently informed Cummins about the forthcoming book. The Australian captain said his former teammate had every right to tell his own story and maintained that questions surrounding the scandal had already been addressed during the investigation.
The controversy, widely known as “Sandpapergate”, erupted during the 2018 Cape Town Test against South Africa. The scandal led to suspensions for then-captain Steve Smith, vice-captain David Warner and batsman Cameron Bancroft.
Bancroft was caught using sandpaper to alter the condition of the ball, while Smith later acknowledged that the team’s leadership group had been involved in the plan.
Cummins, Mitchell Starc, Josh Hazlewood and Nathan Lyon have consistently denied having prior knowledge of the scheme. In a joint statement issued in 2021, the four bowlers said they learned about the incident after seeing the images on television.
Cummins said the team had moved on from the controversy and that his attention was now focused on his responsibilities as captain.
Australia’s upcoming Test series against South Africa in Durban marks the team’s first Test tour of the country since the 2018 scandal.
Khawaja’s forthcoming autobiography could revisit the controversy, although the details of any new revelations remain unknown ahead of its publication.