Australia captain Pat Cummins has played down speculation that Usman Khawaja’s upcoming autobiography could reignite controversy surrounding the infamous 2018 ball-tampering scandal. With Australia preparing to face South Africa in a three-match Test series, Cummins insisted that the incident had been thoroughly investigated and that the team had moved on.

Australia’s tour marks their first Test visit to South Africa since the controversial Cape Town Test in March 2018. During the match at Newlands, Cameron Bancroft was caught on television cameras attempting to alter the condition of the ball using sandpaper, triggering one of the biggest controversies in Australian cricket.

The incident resulted in suspensions for then-captain Steve Smith, vice-captain David Warner and Bancroft. Cummins, who was part of Australia’s bowling attack during the match, has consistently maintained that he had no prior knowledge of the ball-tampering operation. Mitchell Starc, Josh Hazlewood and Nathan Lyon were also part of the bowling unit at the time and are returning to South Africa for the upcoming series.

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Meanwhile, Khawaja, who was also part of the Australian squad during the Newlands Test, is preparing to release his autobiography next month. Reports in Australian media have suggested that he wanted the entire team to accept collective responsibility in the aftermath of the scandal, but the proposal was rejected.

Pat Cummins confirmed that he had spoken to Khawaja about the book but said their conversation did not involve its contents. “Didn’t go back into too much detail. He just basically gave me the heads-up that he’s doing a book, and yeah, as always, no worries. Tell your story. It’s fine,” Cummins said.

The Australian captain added that he had not read the autobiography and suggested that Khawaja himself should be asked about any potential revelations. “You need to ask him,” Pat Cummins said. “It’s obviously a long time ago. All the investigations, everything was done back then. Answered every question a million times. So, yeah, it was dealt with then.”

Cummins also stressed that the Australian team had evolved over the past eight years and was focused on the challenges ahead.

WATCH – SuperSport Takes A Dig At Australia With Sandpapergate Reference Ahead Of South Africa Test Series

The controversy has resurfaced on social media after South African broadcaster SuperSport shared footage from the 2018 incident. The broadcaster, which captured Bancroft’s actions and the subsequent reactions, accompanied the footage with a pointed message ahead of the upcoming series: “Our cameras will be sharp for this 3-match Test series.”

With Australia and South Africa preparing to renew their Test rivalry, the series will begin at Kingsmead in Durban before moving to Gqeberha and Cape Town. Despite the renewed attention on Sandpapergate, Cummins has made it clear that Australia’s focus remains on the cricket rather than revisiting past controversies.