Usman Khawaja’s book tour adjusted after ABC 7.30 Report questioning

Usman Khawaja’s promotional book tour was adjusted after he was pressed about ball-tampering claims on the ABC’s 7.30 Report on Tuesday night, and he withdrew from some radio and television appearances on Wednesday.

Khawaja’s memoir Sabr was published on Tuesday, and the ABC interview with veteran journalist Sarah Ferguson focused on whether players beyond those sanctioned — Steve Smith, David Warner and Cameron Bancroft — knew about the use of sandpaper to alter the condition of the ball during the 2018 tour of South Africa; Khawaja declined to expand on claims in the book that “all” members of the team were aware.

Ferguson asked whether members of the bowling group — Pat Cummins, Mitchell Starc, Josh Hazlewood and Nathan Lyon — had been “involved in conversations about ball tampering”, and Khawaja replied, “I’m just not going to entertain that.” He added: “I wrote [the details] in my book because it was a safe space for me to write. “It took a long time to, first, write the chapter … and go over it and work out a way that it was as balanced as possible.”

When Ferguson returned to the question of whether Cummins had prior knowledge that “sandpaper was being used to change the surface of the ball”, Khawaja said, “I’m not going to answer. I’ve written what I’ve written in my book.” He also told the program: “I’ve come out and stood by those guys [Warner, Smith and Bancroft] and told my account of what I saw.”

Khawaja went on to say, “I’ve been very clear … there are instances when I talk about ‘us’ and ‘them’, but I’ve been very clear in not naming names and staying out of it. I’m not going to start now. “This has never been a witch hunt for me. “You’ve got to remember [that] Pat Cummins is a good friend of mine. Mitchell Starc, a lot of these guys [are and] other players in the team [are too]. “I’m not here to go on a witch hunt. All I’ve ever wanted is for us to take accountability as a team.”

The bowling group issued a statement in 2021 denying knowledge of the use of sandpaper: “We did not know a foreign substance was taken onto the field to alter the condition of the ball until we saw the images on the big screen at Newlands,” the statement read. Cricket Australia said it would not reopen its initial investigation into the scandal as there was “no compelling reason”, and Starc broke his silence on Tuesday to reaffirm his stance that he and other team members had no knowledge of the sandpaper plan.

Ferguson pointed out that Warner had publicly backed Khawaja’s account, saying it was “100% accurate” and that “lies will eventually get out”; Ferguson asked what lies Warner was referring to, and Khawaja replied, “I’m not going to speak on behalf of Davey”. He added: “I’ve tried my best to tell my story in an open and safe environment. “There’s no easy way to do it, but I mean, I’m not here to inflame the situation any more. I was here to tell my truth, what I saw, what I felt, and to stick with those three guys [Warner, Smith and Bancroft] that were made out to be the only people who have taken it. I wanted that to be shown.”

“The book tour is 100[%] still going ahead, we’ve just had to make some adjustments this week, but no major cancellation of the tour at all,” a Penguin statement to the ABC read, confirming the promotional events will continue with changes to this week’s schedule.