Usman Khawaja has shared insights from his impending autobiography with Pat Cummins, the Australian cricket captain. On Thursday, Cummins emphasised that his team has “moved on” from the Sandpapergate scandal of 2018, as they prepare for a Test series in South Africa.
Khawaja’s autobiography, titled Sabr, is set for release on 10th November, shortly after the completion of the three-match Test series against South Africa. According to Code Sports, Khawaja notified Cummins about the book’s content, which is being kept under wraps. Interestingly, Khawaja opted not to use a ghost-writer, and his publisher, Penguin Random House, hasn’t distributed advance copies.
Speaking before the first Test in Durban, Cummins confirmed discussing the book with Khawaja. He expressed no anxiety over potential new details about the ball-tampering incident, stating he’s addressed “every question a million times” over the past eight-and-a-half years.
“Yeah, Uz gave me a buzz a few weeks back, [saying] that he’s releasing a book,” Cummins recalled. “He didn’t go back into too much detail. He just basically gave me a heads-up that he’s doing a book. As always, [my response was], ‘No worries, you can tell your story. That’s fine.'”
Cummins and Khawaja were part of the beleaguered Cape Town Test in 2018, where Cameron Bancroft was caught using sandpaper on the ball. This led to the resignation of Steven Smith and David Warner as captain and vice-captain, respectively, with all involved players serving considerable bans from Cricket Australia.
Pressed for more information on his conversation with Khawaja, Cummins remarked: “I’m not too sure. You’ll need to ask him. It was obviously a long time ago. All the investigations and everything was done back then. I answered every question a million times. It was dealt with then.”
He added, “All I can say is [that] as a group, we’ve moved on. I’ve been very happy with how we’ve been as a group and evolved over the last eight or nine years. My focus remains on captaining the cricket team.”
Australia’s bowling contingent during the Cape Town Test—Cummins, Josh Hazlewood, Mitchell Starc, and Nathan Lyon—have consistently denied prior awareness of any ball-tampering scheme. In 2021, they issued a collective statement urging an end to “rumour-mongering and innuendo” after Bancroft mentioned it was “self-explanatory” they knew more than was revealed.
This Test series marks Australia’s first return to South Africa for cricket in this format since Sandpapergate, which has spotlighted past series reviews. David Warner hinted that more information might yet emerge.
SuperSport, the South African broadcaster, who originally captured Bancroft’s infractions on camera, reignited memories by posting footage of the incident online with the caption: “Our cameras will be sharp for this 3-match Test series.”
Todd Greenberg, Cricket Australia’s chief executive, has joined the Test team in South Africa, remarking that team relations have improved significantly: “We’re all staying in the same hotel, both teams; we’re actually having breakfast together.” He continued, “There isn’t that heightened emotion between the teams that [used to be] here. Eight years ago is a long time.”
Greenberg added, “I’m really proud of this Australian cricket team, what they’ve achieved over that eight-year period… It’s a very different cultural environment, a very different cricket team than what came here eight years ago. The Australian public can feel very proud of that team, what they’ve achieved on the field and how they carry themselves off it.”
