Sandpaper saga: Pat Cummins calls Usman Khawaja allegations 'nonsense'

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Australia captain Pat Cummins vehemently denied any involvement in the plot to use sandpaper for ball-tampering during the 2018 Test series in South Africa, stating that the…

Australia captain Pat Cummins vehemently denied any involvement in the plot to use sandpaper for ball-tampering during the 2018 Test series in South Africa, stating that the allegations in Usman Khawaja's autobiography ⁠are “utter nonsense”.

Former Australia batsman Khawaja said that all the players in the team at Newlands knew about the plan to alter the condition of the ball, putting the spotlight back on the scandal that cost Steve Smith and David Warner their leadership positions and Cameron Bancroft a significant part of his career.

“When he says we all knew, ⁠if by that he means that we knew sandpaper was going out in the field, he's 100 per cent wrong. I've said that consistently for the last eight years,” Cummins said in Sydney.

“I did not know that was happening, but I think Usman actually says things that are actually far more serious than that.

“He says that I and ⁠others were architects of a scheme to ball tamper with sandpaper. That's complete and utter nonsense.

“There was no master plan around using illegal methods,” he added. “There's ​no grand ⁠plan. There's no team meeting. There's no bowlers saying 'this ‌is what must happen'.”

The Australia captain also ​took exception to Pakistan-born Khawaja's allegation that he was not considered for Australia's captaincy because of his ethnicity.

“I think of all the things that I've read this week, I think that's actually the most serious,” he said.

“Him saying that if you're Australian captain, you have to be a certain skin colour, I couldn't disagree with that statement any more.

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