Usman Khawaja Cancels TV, Radio Interviews After Dodging Pat Cummins Questions On 'Sandpapergate'

Usman Khawaja evaded a question on whether Pat Cummins had prior knowledge of ball tampering.© Getty

Former Australia batter Usman Khawaja has reportedly declined television and radio interview requests after being grilled on air during an appearance on an ABC programme hosted by journalist Sarah Ferguson. The development comes in the aftermath of his explosive claims about the infamous 'Sandpapergate' scandal that rocked Australian cricket during the 2018 tour of South Africa. In his autobiography Sabr, Khawaja claimed the entire Australian team was aware of the ball-tampering incident during the Cape Town Test and had also attempted to alter the condition of the ball in the second Test at Port Elizabeth.

According to local media reports, multiple television and radio networks received emails from Penguin, the publisher of Khawaja's book, on Wednesday morning informing them that the cricketer's scheduled interviews had been cancelled.

Khawaja appeared to be walking on eggshells as Ferguson fired a series of tough questions during his appearance on ABC's 7.30.

Ferguson repeatedly pressed Khawaja on whether the entire Australian team was aware of the use of sandpaper, beyond the three players - Steve Smith, David Warner and Cameron Bancroft - who were ultimately found guilty over the ball-tampering scandal.

Khawaja was also asked whether the experienced bowling quartet of Pat Cummins, Mitchell Starc, Josh Hazlewood and Nathan Lyon were aware of the ball-tampering incident. However, he declined to entertain Ferguson's question.

"I'm just not going to entertain that," Khawaja said. "And I say that for one reason: I wrote [the details] in my book because it was a safe space for me to write. It took a long time to, first, write the chapter ... and go over it and work out a way that it was as balanced as possible."

The Pakistan-born former opener also evaded a question regarding the current Australia captain Cummins having prior knowledge of the plan to doctor the ball.

"I'm not going to answer that. I've written what I've written in my book. I've come out and stood by those guys [Warner, Smith and Bancroft] and told my account of what I saw. I've been very clear ... there are instances when I talk about 'us' and 'them', but I've been very clear in not naming names and staying out of it. I'm not going to start now," he added.

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