Australian fast bowler Mitchell Starc has reiterated that he had no prior knowledge of the 2018 “Sandpapergate” ball-tampering scheme, responding to recent claims by former teammate Usman Khawaja that the entire dressing room was aware of the plot. Starc’s comments arrived as Cricket Australia confirmed it will not reopen its investigation into the Cape Town Test incident.
Starc Reaffirms Position on Tampering Scandal
The controversy returned to public discussion eight years after the event following revelations in Khawaja’s new book, Sabr. Former opening batsman David Warner stated on Monday that Khawaja’s account was “100 per cent accurate.” Following the original 2018 probe, Cricket Australia concluded that only Warner, Steve Smith, and Cameron Bancroft were aware of the plan to alter the condition of the ball to achieve reverse swing, resulting in suspensions for all three players.
Starc, alongside fellow Test bowlers Pat Cummins, Josh Hazlewood, and Nathan Lyon, issued a joint statement in 2021 denying any knowledge of the ball-tampering. Speaking to reporters on Tuesday, Starc maintained that his position remains unchanged.
“I haven’t really paid much attention to it to be fair,” Starc said. “There are differing opinions of eight years ago. We were heavily grilled through the process, at the time and since.”
Starc emphasized that he stands by the statements made five years ago and during the initial inquiry. “I won’t speak on behalf of the bowlers but from where I stand my opinion hasn’t changed, my recollection hasn’t changed from what we said in 2021,” Starc said. “As far as our statement said, we weren’t aware of things being taken on the field. That’s where I’ll leave it.”
He added: “I will be sticking to what I said five years ago, what I said at the time eight years ago, so clearly there is differing versions from different people. We weren’t aware of anything taken on the field to be tampered with. We saw it on the big screen in Cape Town.”
Addressing Khawaja’s allegation that ball tampering also took place during the preceding Test match in Port Elizabeth, now Gqeberha, Starc stated: “That’s the first I was aware of any of that.” He noted that he has not read Khawaja’s book and has no plans to do so.
Cricket Australia Rules Out Reopening Investigation
Cricket Australia chief executive Todd Greenberg, who was not with the organization in 2018, ruled out initiating a new inquiry into the matter during an interview with Australian radio station SEN.
“We don’t see any compelling reason to open the investigation or revisit this again,” Greenberg said. “I don’t think there’s anything that can be gained from that. We have said we’re comfortable with the outcome of the investigation based on the information we’ve received. That includes what we’ve seen from Usman. Our position hasn’t changed on that.”
Greenberg explained that reviewing past decisions through hindsight offers no practical benefit to the board. “There’s absolutely no benefit in going back, that’s the clear position of the CA board. I think it’s fine, we’ve got to look ahead, and the matter was dealt with under a previous leadership back in 2018,” he said. “Trying to second-guess decisions from a previous time or making an assessment through the prism of hindsight is not something we want to do.”
Greenberg noted that Khawaja’s recollection directly conflicts with statements made by other team members since 2018. “When you cut to the core of the challenge that we face here, Usman’s version of events is inconsistent with what others have had to say,” Greenberg added. “I can assure you there are lots of other players who have a very, very different version of events and they have made that very public from the very start of 2018. They have been very consistent in their position right through until today.”
According to Greenberg, current Test captain Pat Cummins is expected to address the situation publicly in the coming days or weeks. Meanwhile, Starc, Cummins, Lyon, and Hazlewood are absent from Australia’s upcoming home white-ball series against England. All-rounder Mitchell Marsh, who also featured in the 2018 Cape Town match, will captain Australia across three ODIs and five T20s, with a press conference scheduled for Thursday ahead of the opening ODI at Perth’s Optus Stadium on Friday.
