Usman Khawaja Says Australia Used Sandpaper Before the 2018 Cape Town Test

Usman Khawaja has alleged that Australia used sandpaper on the ball during the second Test of its 2018 South Africa tour, before the Cape Town incident that led to three players being suspended. His account, disclosed on November 6 in an interview and reporting on his memoir Sabr, challenges the view that knowledge of the plan was confined to a small group. The allegations are his account, rather than a new finding by cricket authorities. Khawaja says sandpaper was discussed openly in the dressing room at St George's Park in Port Elizabeth, now Gqeberha. He alleges Cameron Bancroft volunteered to use it during South Africa's first innings in that match. Describing the extent of knowledge among players and staff, Khawaja said: "It was all of us." He also says he argued for collective responsibility after the subsequent Cape Town Test. Cricket Australia said relevant information presented to it had been considered. A spokesperson said the organization remained "comfortable with the findings of our integrity process" and that the opportunity to present relevant information remained available. In a joint statement issued in May 2021, bowlers Pat Cummins, Josh Hazlewood, Mitchell Starc and Nathan Lyon denied knowing a foreign substance had been taken onto the field before seeing the Newlands big-screen images. The 2018 Cape Town scandal resulted in Cricket Australia suspending Steve Smith and David Warner for 12 months and Bancroft for nine months. Khawaja dedicates the relevant chapter of his memoir to those three players. His newly disclosed account revisits both when sandpaper was first used on that tour and how widely its use was known.