Khawaja 100 percent wrong, his Sandpapergate story irresponsible: Pat Cummins

Pat Cummins has hit back at Usman Khawaja over his Sandpapergate revelations, calling his account irresponsible and accusing his former teammate of being casual with people's reputations. He also firmly denied knowing about the 2018 ball-tampering plot.Pat Cummins addressed the media regarding Usman Khawaja's recent allegations regarding Sandpapergate. (Image: Screengrab from Reuters)Sydney,Nov 13, 2026 05:10 ISTPat Cummins has hit back at Usman Khawaja over his recent revelations surrounding Australia's 2018 Sandpapergate scandal, accusing his former teammate of being casual with people's lives and reputations. The Australian captain, who considers Khawaja a friend, said he was particularly troubled by the former opener's admission that he had warned Cameron Bancroft to be careful while using sandpaper during the infamous Cape Town Test.Addressing the media in Sydney on Friday, Cummins strongly denied knowing that sandpaper was being taken onto the field and dismissed suggestions that he and other members of Australia's bowling attack were architects of the ball-tampering plan. He also questioned why Khawaja had waited eight years to reveal what he knew about the incident."Usman is a friend, but friends aren't casual with each other's lives and reputations. In his book he's been casual with my life and the lives of many others and I think Australian cricket," Cummins said in his opening statement.While acknowledging Khawaja's right to tell his story, the Australia captain stressed that there was a responsibility attached to making allegations that could affect other people's lives. "I support him to tell his story, 100%. I'm glad he feels like he can but we have to be accountable for the things that we say and do," he said.CUMMINS DENIES INVOLVEMENTCummins was unequivocal in rejecting Khawaja's suggestion that Australia's bowling group knew about the sandpaper being taken onto the field during the third Test against South Africa in Cape Town in March 2018. "When he says we all knew, if by that he means we knew sandpaper was going out on the field, he's 100% wrong," Cummins said."I said that consistently for the last eight years. I did not know that was happening. But I think Usman actually says things that are far more serious than that."He says that I and others were architects of a scheme to ball tamper with sandpaper. That's complete and utter nonsense."However, it was Khawaja's revelation about his interaction with Bancroft that appeared to have particularly unsettled Cummins. The Australia captain said he was shocked to learn that his former teammate had allegedly warned Bancroft to be careful while using the sandpaper."That's not the Usman that I know. It's not the Usman that has been part of a team that's helped rebuild the Australian cricket culture over the last eight years. And, you know, the Usman that would have stopped that from happening there and then," Cummins said.REAL PEOPLE AFFECTEDDuring the subsequent media interaction, Cummins was asked about his personal reaction to Khawaja's revelations and whether they had affected their friendship. He admitted that the issue had been weighing on him, particularly after learning that Khawaja had allegedly warned Bancroft about using the sandpaper."It's something I have been grappling with the last couple of days. Usman is a friend. But I think the way he's kind of been quite casual and flippant with people's lives and Australian cricket, I don't think that's OK. I don't think that's what friends do," he said.Cummins further explained that his objection was not limited to the personal fallout between the two former teammates. He pointed out that Khawaja's account had implications for several people who had been involved in the scandal, as well as Australian cricket as a whole."It affects real people. It affects people's lives. It's also strange. I love Australian cricket. It's given me so much. This really affects Australian cricket," Cummins said."I think the way that he's presented his story, I think he's done that in a very casual manner. And it affects a lot of people. That's what I'm grappling with at the moment because I don't think it's okay."WHY KHAWAJA WAITEDCummins also questioned why Khawaja had taken so long to speak about what he knew, suggesting that the former opener might have been grappling with his own recollections of the scandal for several years."I don't know why it's taken Usman so long. You know, again, it's only this week, a revelation to me that he knew what was going on, that he was sitting next to Cam and that he told Cam to be careful," Cummins said.He also pointed out that Khawaja had not approached him or other members of the team to hear their accounts of what happened before making his claims."I think a really important part here is Usman has never really asked me or anyone else what we know," Cummins said.Cummins suggested that Khawaja might have been dealing with his own recollections of the incident for years and questioned whether that could explain why he had not disclosed what he knew during the investigation in 2018."Maybe he's been grappling with that for eight years and is that a reason why he didn't come out in the investigation at the time? Perhaps. I don't know. That's for Usman."The Australia captain also pointed to Khawaja's proximity to Bancroft during the incident, suggesting that the former opener appeared to have known more about what was happening than several others in the dressing room."It looks like it's been sitting heavy on him for a while. It's 8.5 years ago. I get that. You know, again, he's sitting next to Bancroft, so it sounds like he knew a lot more than others in the changeroom," he added.CAPTAINCY CLAIMCummins also strongly disagreed with Khawaja's claim that his Pakistani heritage and skin colour had prevented him from being considered for Australia's captaincy in the aftermath of Sandpapergate. The Australia captain described the allegation as one of the most serious claims he had read and insisted that such an assertion required evidence."I think the things I've read, it's the most serious," Cummins said."To think that the job that I hold is quarantined from people based on their skin colour, it's a pretty big statement. If you are going to say that, I think you have to have evidence. And I just don't think that's the case."While acknowledging that he agreed with Khawaja on several issues, Cummins made it clear that he strongly disagreed with the suggestion that Australia's captaincy was restricted by race or ethnicity."So again, I agree with Uzzy on a lot of things. But when I disagree, I tell him that I disagree. And him saying that if you're Australian captain, you have to be a certain skin colour, I couldn't disagree with that statement any more," he added.2018 DRESSING ROOMCummins maintained that the Australian players had been completely forthcoming during the investigation that followed the Cape Town scandal. He said the team had shared everything they knew with investigators, describing the process as an open-book exercise."We all took part in that investigation at the time. We told them everything. Absolutely everything. Open book. So in some ways maybe that was for us part of the process to help get over it," he said.The Australia captain also reflected on the culture within the team at the time, describing a dressing room divided by internal silos and driven by a win-at-all-costs mentality.Cummins recalled being a 24-year-old playing just his 13th Test in 2018, when the team had what he described as an "ugly underbelly". He said eliminating those traits and building a healthier team culture had been among his priorities during his six years as captain.He also acknowledged that Khawaja might never have fully moved on from the scandal, suggesting that writing about his experiences could be the former opener's way of addressing something that had stayed with him."Maybe this is Usman's chance and he never really got over it at the time," Cummins said.Despite his strong criticism, Cummins reiterated that he supported Khawaja's right to share his experiences. However, he wanted to put the controversy behind him after addressing the allegations in detail during Friday's media interaction."I don't want to talk about this again after today," he said.- Ends