Cummins rejects Khawaja sandpaper allegations as "100% wrong" and "utter nonsense"

On 12 November 2026 in Sydney, Australia Test captain Pat Cummins publicly denied claims by former team-mate Usman Khawaja about the 2018 sandpaper ball-tampering incident, calling the assertions "100% wrong" and "complete and utter nonsense" during an address to the media.

Cummins, who was named Australia Test captain in 2021, responded after Khawaja published his autobiography this week in which the former batter said the entire Australia team knew about the sandpaper scheme and should have taken responsibility. The 2018 incident involved Steve Smith, David Warner and Cameron Bancroft being punished for a plot to tamper with the ball using sandpaper in Australia's Test against South Africa in Cape Town.

Directly addressing Khawaja's suggestion that all players were aware, Cummins said: "When he says we all knew, if by that he means we knew sandpaper was going out on the field, he's 100% wrong." He added: "I said that consistently for the last eight years. I did not know that was happening."

Cummins rejected an allegation that he and others were architects of a plan to use sandpaper, saying: "He says that I and others were architects of a scheme to ball tamper with sandpaper. That's complete and utter nonsense."

On the personal dimension of the dispute, Cummins said: "Usman is a friend, but friends aren't casual with each other's lives and reputations." He accused Khawaja of being "casual" with the reputations of several people and with "Australian cricket," and added: "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."

Cummins and Khawaja played 56 Tests together until Khawaja retired from international cricket in January; Khawaja was in the Australia XI when Cummins made his Test debut in 2011 and the pair were also team-mates in domestic cricket with New South Wales.