For anyone who follows the game, certain years carry a permanent weight. The memory of the 2018 Test series in South Africa remains one of the most fraught chapters in modern cricket history, an episode defined by a scandal that sent shockwaves through the sport. Yet, even as time has marched on, the full accounting of what happened, and who knew what within the dressing room, has continued to haunt Australian cricket. Years after the event, the ghosts of South Africa have returned to the surface, threatening to disrupt the peace of a team preparing for a new season.
The catalyst for this sudden eruption is a new book titled Sabr, written by Usman Khawaja. Released on November 10, 2026, the book contains an explosive claim that threatens to rewrite the narrative of that turbulent era. According to Khawaja, every single member of the Australian team actually knew about the ball-tampering plot during that fateful series. It is a sweeping accusation that directly targets the collective awareness of a dressing room that has long maintained a narrative of limited involvement, thrusting the team's internal dynamics right back into the public glare.
Mitchell Starc hits back as he's grilled over explosive new Sandpapergate claims - and is asked if he will speak to Usman Khawaja ever again https://t.co/Iz1G3pas6c
The fallout from the book's release has prompted a swift response from the current squad. Mitchell Starc stepped forward to face the media, becoming the first current Australian Test player to address the heavy allegations leveled by his teammate. The setting was meant to celebrate the upcoming summer of cricket, but the questions waiting for the players were anchored firmly in the past.
The reality of the situation became apparent almost as soon as the media engagement began.
The reality of the situation became apparent almost as soon as the media engagement began. The questions pivoted sharply away from the upcoming matches and toward the revelations in Khawaja's book. Starc, a veteran fast bowler carrying the hopes of the nation's attack, found himself immediately on the defensive, tasked with navigating a controversy that many in the Australian setup had surely hoped was permanently buried.
Faced with the direct claim that everyone in the team was in on the plot, Starc did not hesitate to push back. He firmly rejected Khawaja's allegation, anchoring his defense to the official position the bowlers had taken years prior. Drawing a clear line in the sand, Starc insisted that his memory of events has not wavered in the slightest since the bowlers released a joint statement in 2021 denying any prior knowledge of the tampering.
To understand the weight of Starc's words is to look back at the defensive architecture the Australian bowlers built. In 2021, the bowling group issued a joint statement intended to draw a definitive line under the affair, asserting that they had no prior awareness of the plan to alter the ball on the field. By tying his current stance directly to that document, Starc sought to project an image of absolute consistency, effectively telling the public that his truth has remained entirely unchanged through the intervening years.
Ian Healy says Mitchell Starc once told him the Australian bowlers did not know about the sandpaper. Starc is Healy's nephew-in-law. Healy said "I have had it said to me by my nephew-in-law, Mitch Starc, that, 'We didn't know'." In his book Sabr, Usman Khawaja says the entire touring party knew. That goes against the bowlers' 2021 public statement, in which they denied prior knowledge of the plan. David Warner has backed Khawaja's account in full. Healy has always thought no one knew. Now he says "Does this now need proving? Maybe we've got to dig deeper again." Healy believed it for years. Now he wants it checked.
When pressed further on the contradiction between his position and Khawaja's assertions, Starc neatly sidestepped the invitation to elaborate or ignite a public war of words. "That’s for someone to explain further," Starc stated, effectively tossing the burden of proof back toward the author of the book. "As far as our statement said [in 2021], we weren’t aware of it being taken on the field. That’s where I’ll leave it."
The friction, however, is not confined to a single disagreement between two teammates. The controversy has deepened with the involvement of other prominent figures from that era. On Monday evening, former teammate David Warner publicly backed up Usman Khawaja's allegations, adding substantial weight to the claims and signaling a widening rift among those who lived through the scandal.
As the media event wore on, Starc attempted to refocus attention on the present reality facing the squad. With the home Test summer looming large, the veteran fast bowler tried to steer the narrative back to the sport itself, remarking, "I thought we were here for the summer of cricket." Yet, as the divisions laid bare by Khawaja's book and Warner's backing continue to ripple through the game, the shadows of the 2018 series remain stubbornly difficult to shake.