Cummins denies knowing sandpaper was taken onto Cape Town field

Australia's Test captain disputes Usman Khawaja's book account, criticises the original sanctions and says he will not take legal action.

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IN FULL: Pat Cummins rejects Usman Khawaja's 'sandpapergate' claims | ABC NEWS

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0:13Cummins says he did not know sandpaper was being taken onto the field at Cape Town.
5:12He denies there was a master plan to use illegal methods to alter the ball.
15:15He describes the original sanctions imposed after the scandal as excessively harsh.
23:48Cummins says he received advice about possible defamation but will not take legal action.
28:45He rejects suggestions that race or skin colour influenced Australian captaincy decisions.
44:07He explains that abrasive materials can legitimately be present in dressing rooms for preparing bats.

Pat Cummins says he knew nothing about sandpaper being taken onto the field during Australia's 2018 Cape Town Test, rejecting former teammate Usman Khawaja's assertion that everyone involved in the series knew about ball tampering.

In a Sydney press conference broadcast by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC), Australia's public broadcaster, the Test captain draws a distinction between Khawaja's broad account and his own knowledge: he says he did not know sandpaper was going out onto the ground.

The dispute revisits the scandal known as Sandpapergate, which erupted during a Test against South Africa at Newlands in Cape Town. Television cameras captured sandpaper being used to roughen the ball. Altering its surface can affect how it moves through the air, making the distinction between permitted ball maintenance and illegal tampering central to the controversy.

Cummins, who bowled in that series, also rejects suggestions that he and others devised the scheme. "There was no master plan around using illegal methods," he says. He denies remembering a team discussion in which Khawaja proposed taking collective responsibility, and says he answered Cricket Australia's investigation truthfully.

The disagreement has a personal dimension. "Usman's a friend, but friends aren't casual with each other's lives and reputations," Cummins says. Asked how players from the same dressing room could give different accounts, he describes the large, divided spaces used by international teams, including at Newlands.

His defence of his own account does not extend to defending the severity of the original punishments. "My personal opinion is it was way too heavy-handed. It was way over the top," he says of the sanctions imposed after the scandal.

Later questions widen beyond Cape Town. Cummins rejects suggestions that race or skin colour influenced Australian captaincy decisions. He also explains that sandpaper has legitimate uses around dressing rooms for preparing bats, separate from its prohibited use on the ball.

Although Cummins says he has been advised that Khawaja's comments might be defamatory, he rules out legal action. He continues answering questions deep into the press conference, saying he wants to address them rather than leave them to resurface.