Starc revisits 2018 ball-tampering controversy after Khawaja's explosive claims

Mitchell Starc has stood by his account of Australia's 2018 ball-tampering scandal after Usman Khawaja claimed the entire team knew about the plot. Starc also addressed his 2021 statement and his relationship with his former teammate.Mitchell Starc stood by his version of events that took place at the 2018 ball-tampering scandal. (Image: Reuters)New Delhi,Nov 10, 2026 13:46 ISTMitchell Starc has stood by his account of Australia's infamous 2018 ball-tampering scandal after former teammate Usman Khawaja claimed that every member of the team knew about the plan to alter the condition of the ball during the South Africa tour.Khawaja's allegations, detailed in his newly released book Sabr, have reopened one of the most controversial episodes in Australian cricket. Former opener David Warner also backed the claims on Monday evening, bringing renewed attention to the events of the 2018 tour just as Australia prepare for the start of their home Test summer.Starc became the first member of Australia's current Test squad to address the controversy publicly at an event in Sydney on Tuesday. The left-arm fast bowler maintained that his recollection of the events had not changed since the joint statement he released alongside Pat Cummins, Josh Hazlewood and Nathan Lyon in 2021."I thought we were here for the summer of cricket," Starc said when the questions turned to the controversy. He acknowledged that different accounts had emerged about what happened during the South Africa tour but reiterated that his position remained the same."We were heavily drilled through the process at the time since. Now, I guess, I won't speak on behalf of the bowlers, but where I stand, my opinion hasn't changed. My recollection hasn't changed from what we said in 2021," he said.STARC STANDS FIRM Khawaja's assertion that everyone in the Australian team knew about the ball-tampering plan contradicts the account maintained by the four frontline bowlers.Asked specifically whether everyone knew, Starc said the claims made in the book were for Khawaja to explain."As far as our statement said, we weren't aware of it being taken on the field. That's where I'll leave it," he said.Starc also denied knowing that sandpaper had been used during the second Test against South Africa in Port Elizabeth. He maintained that he first became aware of the incident when footage of Cameron Bancroft concealing sandpaper down his trousers appeared on the stadium's big screen during the third Test in Cape Town."We weren't aware it was taken on the field to be tampered with. We saw it on the big screen in Cape Town. As far as the book's concerned, I haven't read it and probably won't read it, so that's for Usman to elaborate on," Starc said.The 2021 statement, released after renewed questions about the bowlers' involvement, had firmly denied any prior knowledge of the plan. Cummins, Starc, Hazlewood and Lyon said they only became aware that a foreign substance had been taken onto the field when the images appeared on the big screen at Newlands.The four bowlers also pointed out that umpires Nigel Llong and Richard Illingworth had inspected the ball after the incident came to light but did not change it, finding no visible damage.While acknowledging that what happened was wrong and should never have occurred, they had called for an end to speculation about their involvement.KHAWAJA'S CLAIMSKhawaja's revelations have also brought the relationships between members of Australia's 2018 squad into focus. Starc revealed that he had not spoken to his former teammate over the previous couple of days.Asked whether he would speak to Khawaja again, the fast bowler offered a brief response."It's up to him," Starc said.Starc also spoke about the renewed attention on the scandal, with Australia preparing for the start of another Test summer. He acknowledged that players and members of the support staff had experienced the aftermath of the Cape Town incident differently."It's definitely disappointing," he said.The fast bowler also pointed to former head coach Darren Lehmann, who resigned following the scandal, as someone whose role in the events should not be overlooked.With the first Test against New Zealand scheduled to begin in Perth on December 9, Australia are preparing for the next chapter of their international calendar. However, Khawaja's book has brought the events of the 2018 South Africa tour back into the spotlight, with differing accounts from former teammates once again drawing attention to the Cape Town controversy.- Ends