Harry Brook says he never witnessed ball-tampering as Sandpapergate resurfaces
England captain Harry Brook said in Perth on 12 November 2026, ahead of the first ODI against Australia, that he had never witnessed ball-tampering, after the 2018 Sandpapergate controversy returned to the headlines. He added that England are concentrating on preparing for the eight white-ball matches against Australia.
The issue re-emerged following the release of former Australia batter Usman Khawaja's new book, which renewed attention on the incident in Cape Town. Australia were at the centre of that controversy during the third Test against South Africa in March 2018, when Cameron Bancroft was caught using sandpaper to alter the condition of the ball. Brook was around 17 or 18 at the time and had not yet made his international debut.
Asked about his own experience of ball-tampering ahead of the first ODI, Brook said: "I've never seen any ball-tampering before. I wasn't in that Australia dressing room. I think I was about 17 or 18 years old, so I was completely oblivious to any of that stuff." He made the comment as the subject again featured in media discussion around the series.
On staying focused, Brook said: "We're here in Australia, we're looking forward to this series and all we can do is concentrate on ourselves and getting ourselves as ready as possible. We're just trying to concentrate on ourselves at the minute. That's all we can do. We're here to play against a strong Australian side in their backyard." He framed that focus as England's approach while on tour.
Joe Root, who was England captain when the Sandpapergate scandal broke, was also asked about ball-tampering and dismissed the suggestion it was widespread in international cricket at the time, saying: "I can only speak from my own experiences and that's not how I feel, no." His comments were made a day before Brook addressed the matter.
Brook and Australia captain Mitchell Marsh took part in a light-hearted promotional event ahead of the opening ODI, and were pictured enjoying a mock afternoon tea on the outfield. Reflecting on that meeting, Brook said: "I wasn't expecting to have a tea with him, that's for sure but, yeah, it's a nice way to kick off the series." The interaction was described as a relaxed start to the rivalry.
England will return to Optus Stadium for the series opener; Brook recalled the atmosphere there and said his side were looking forward to playing at the ground. "Australia against England is always a good series and we're looking forward to kickstarting it. We're very happy to be out here. We're all really raring to go here at Optus Stadium, which is where the last Ashes started. It's an amazing place to play cricket. The atmosphere when we played here was unbelievable," he added.
The two teams meet in the opening ODI at Optus Stadium in Perth to begin the eight-match white-ball series.
