Sydney, November 10, 2026 (Yes Punjab News)
Australian fast bowler Mitchell Starc has rejected Usman Khawaja’s explosive claims that the entire Australian team knew about the ball-tampering scandal during the 2018 Cape Town Test against South Africa, insisting that his recollection of the incident remains unchanged.
Speaking at the launch of Kayo Sports and Fox Cricket’s Summer of the Century, Starc said he stood by the joint statement issued in 2021 alongside fellow fast bowlers Pat Cummins, Josh Hazlewood and spinner Nathan Lyon. The statement denied that the bowlers knew sandpaper was being taken onto the field to tamper with the ball during the Cape Town Test.
“My opinion hasn’t changed. My recollection hasn’t changed from what we said in 2021,” Starc said, as quoted by The Sydney Morning Herald.
Responding to Khawaja’s assertion that everyone knew about the scandal, Starc reiterated that the bowlers had not been aware of the ball-tampering activity on the field.
“We weren’t aware of it being taken on the field. We saw it on the big screen for the first time in Cape Town,” he said, adding that he had not read Khawaja’s book, Sabr, and was unlikely to do so.
Starc also denied knowing about Cameron Bancroft’s use of sandpaper during the second Test in Port Elizabeth. He said Cape Town was the first time he became aware of the incident.
The bowlers’ 2021 statement followed Bancroft’s comments to The Guardian that it was “self-explanatory” that the bowlers knew about the sandpaper. Khawaja has now revisited the controversy in his autobiography, dedicating the chapter to Bancroft, David Warner and Steve Smith. Warner has also backed Khawaja’s account, describing the claims as “100% accurate”.
Starc said he had not spoken to Khawaja in the preceding couple of days and left open the question of whether the two would discuss the matter.
Expressing disappointment that the controversy had resurfaced ahead of Australia’s summer cricket season, Starc said the current squad had changed considerably over the past eight years. He also pointed out that former coach Darren Lehmann and other members of the support staff had been part of the events surrounding the scandal.
Australia are set to face England in eight white-ball matches at home from Friday before hosting New Zealand for a four-Test series later in the year.
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