Former Australian bowling coach David Saker has reportedly been identified as the coach Usman Khawaja referred to in his autobiography while discussing the infamous 2018 Sandpapergate controversy. A Sydney Morning Herald report has named Saker in connection with Khawaja’s revelations, adding another dimension to the ongoing debate over Australia’s ball-tampering scandal.

Khawaja’s autobiography, which features a dedicated chapter on Sandpapergate, has created considerable discussion within Australian cricket. His allegations have attracted reactions from several former teammates, with David Warner appearing unwilling to deny the claims, while Mitchell Starc has strongly rejected the suggestion that the bowling group knew about the sandpaper being taken onto the field.

According to the Sydney Morning Herald, David Saker allegedly advised Steve Smith and Cameron Bancroft against revealing the identity of the yellow object used during the infamous Cape Town Test in their media interaction after the day’s play. “According to tour sources, Saker urged Steve Smith and Cameron Bancroft not to reveal the nature of the yellow object that had been taken onto the field at Newlands at their media conference after play on the day the scandal took off,” the newspaper reported. “You cannot say sandpaper,” Saker allegedly told them repeatedly.

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Although Khawaja did not directly identify the bowling coach in his book, he provided several details about the conversations surrounding the incident. He also recalled an exchange in which a coach allegedly encouraged Bancroft to continue working on generating movement through the air.

“With a smile on his face, he said, ‘Bangers [Bancroft], whatever you are doing, we need more of it. It is wet out there; we just need more of it. Then I saw Bangers pick up a piece of sandpaper and put it in his pocket,” Usman Khawaja wrote. “The coach gave both me and Cameron a wry smile of satisfaction and walked away. Guys, I don’t care what happens, but Test cricketers are too good against the straight ball. I don’t care what you have to do, or how, but we need to get it moving in the air,” he added.

Interestingly, David Saker had previously addressed the controversy in a Sydney Morning Herald column after leaving Cricket Australia in February 2019. He had signed a non-disclosure agreement with the governing body.

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“There were a lot of people to blame. It could have been me to blame; it could have been someone else. It could have been stopped and it was not, which is unfortunate. You could point your finger at me, you could point your finger at ‘Boof’ [then coach Darren Lehmann], you could point it at other people; of course you could,” David Saker had written.