Cricket Australia (CA) has responded to David Warner’s allegations that the governing body failed to investigate key members of the team during its inquiry into the infamous 2018 ball-tampering scandal. The former Australian opener questioned why Josh Hazlewood, Mitchell Starc and Nathan Lyon were allegedly not interviewed before the board concluded that the bowlers had no knowledge of the controversial plan. The debate has resurfaced following the release of Usman Khawaja’s autobiography, Sabr: Finding My Way in Cricket and Life, in November 2026.
Khawaja made fresh revelations about the team’s alleged knowledge of the Sandpaper Gate incident, prompting former players to revisit one of the darkest episodes in Australian cricket. David Warner took to Instagram on Saturday to question the credibility of CA’s original investigation. He suggested that the governing body had reached its conclusions without properly questioning several senior members of the bowling attack.
“As far as I am aware, CA did not interview Josh Hazlewood, Mitchell Starc or Nathan Lyon in their 2018 investigation. If that’s correct, then how can CA push the idea that the bowlers didn’t know? It looks like they had decided who they wanted to blame from the very beginning ran a shoddy investigation to serve the purpose and now they want to maintain the false narrative that the bowlers had no idea. That stinks of a cover up.”
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Responding to Warner’s claims, a Cricket Australia spokesperson maintained that every player had been given an opportunity to provide their account during the initial investigation. However, the board did not directly confirm whether Hazlewood, Starc and Lyon had been formally interviewed.
“As we have stated previously, all players were given the opportunity to speak at the time of the initial investigation and have had the ability to come forward with new evidence in the eight years since. Subsequently, CA has respected every player and former players right to provide their own version of events.”
David Warner says there was a Cricket Australia ‘cover up’ over the Sandpapergate affair with the sensational claim that 3 members of the bowling lineup were never interviewed in 2018. https://t.co/zyWf3CKExm
— Mark Gottlieb (@MarkGottlieb) November 14, 2026
CA chief executive Todd Greenberg has also indicated that the governing body sees no reason to reopen the original investigation or conduct another inquiry.
Khawaja’s autobiography has further intensified the controversy, with the former batter alleging that the entire Australian dressing room, including players and coaching staff, knew about the use of sandpaper during the 2018 South Africa tour. He also claimed that Cameron Bancroft had used sandpaper during the second Test in Port Elizabeth after finding the ball unattended near the boundary.
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The original scandal erupted on March 24, 2018, during the third Test against South Africa at Newlands, Cape Town. Television footage showed Bancroft attempting to rough up one side of the ball using a piece of yellow sandpaper to generate reverse swing. When questioned by the umpires, he initially produced a black sunglasses pouch before admitting to using sandpaper during the post-match press conference.
Following an investigation, CA identified Warner as the architect of the plan, while then-captain Steve Smith was found to have known about it. Both received 12-month bans from international and domestic cricket. Warner was also handed a lifetime leadership ban, while Smith faced an additional year-long leadership suspension. Bancroft received a nine-month ban and a 12-month leadership restriction. Meanwhile, head coach Darren Lehmann stepped down following the controversial tour, bringing an end to a turbulent period in Australian cricket.
