Starc rejects Khawaja's Sandpapergate claims as Aussie row intensifies

Dubai: The fallout from Australia's infamous 2018 ball-tampering scandal has intensified after Mitchell Starc rejected Usman Khawaja's claims that the entire team knew about the plot to alter the ball during the Cape Town Test against South Africa.

Starc became the first current Australian player to publicly respond to the allegations, insisting he and the other bowlers had no knowledge that sandpaper was being used.

"My opinion hasn't changed, and my recollection hasn't changed from what we said in 2021," Starc said.

"We weren't aware anything was taken on the field to be tampered with. We saw it on the big screen in Cape Town."

His comments directly contradict Khawaja's account in his newly released autobiography, Sabr, in which the former Australia opener claimed the entire dressing room knew about the plan.

David Warner, who received a 12-month suspension alongside Steve Smith following the scandal, has backed Khawaja's version of events, describing his claims as "100 per cent accurate".

Warner also questioned the original Cricket Australia investigation, suggesting it was rushed and flawed.

However, Cricket Australia chief executive Todd Greenberg has ruled out reopening the investigation, despite the renewed controversy.

Greenberg said the governing body remained satisfied with its original findings, which concluded that Warner, Smith and Cameron Bancroft were the only players directly involved in the plot.

Khawaja has since defended his decision to speak publicly, denying suggestions he was attempting to spark a witch-hunt or generate publicity for his book.

During an interview with ABC's 7.30 programme, he reiterated that his intention was to encourage collective accountability rather than single out individual teammates.

"I'm not here to go on a witch hunt," Khawaja said.

"All I've ever wanted is for us to take accountability as a team."

Meanwhile, Australian cricket great Adam Gilchrist has urged those involved to put the controversy behind them, suggesting disagreements should be resolved privately rather than through public exchanges.

The latest developments have reopened one of Australian cricket's darkest chapters, eight years after Bancroft was caught on camera using sandpaper to alter the condition of the ball.

With former teammates now offering conflicting accounts, and Cricket Australia refusing to revisit its findings, questions over the full extent of the scandal remain unanswered.