Eight years on, Sandpapergate returns to haunt Australian Cricket: The entire cheating scandal explained amid Usman Khawaja and David Warner’s explosive revelations

IN MARCH 2018, the cricketing world witnessed one of the biggest scandals in its history during the infamous Australia tour of South Africa. The Test series was already getting tense, with the players from both teams indulging in heated altercations and ugly exchanges on and off the field. However, the biggest controversy came during the 3rd Test with the Australian Cricket Team allegedly involved in an illegal move in an attempt to tilt the conditions in their favor.

With Cricket Australia conducting an internal investigation at the time, leading to the players responsible facing punishment, the dust seemed to have settled there. However, in a bombshell update, retired Australian cricketer Usman Khawaja has made new details of the case public more than eight years after the incident. The 39-year-old batsman made the explosive allegations in his autobiography Sabr, set to officially be released on November 10, 2026. The remarks gained even more attention after the former vice-captain of the team David Warner backed Khawaja, calling the latter’s description of events “100% accurate.” 

With two of Cricket Australia’s legends possibly casting a shadow on their own board’s investigation and former teammates, here’s a look back on what transpired eight years ago.

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What was the 2018 Sandpapergate?

The Sandpapergate refers to the infamous ball-tampering incident involving Australia in 2018. South Africa was set to host the Aussies for a four-match Test series starting March 1, 2018. The Aussies — under the leadership of captain Steve Smith, vice-captain David Warner and coach Darren Lehmann — were level 1-1 with the home side heading into the third match at Cape Town on March 22, 2018.  It was on the third day of the match when the cameras caught Cameron Bancroft’s infamous act.

Cameron Bancroft caught cheating on camera

During the second innings of South Africa, with the home side leading by more than 180 runs, Bancroft was seen shining the ball — a usual practice by the fielding side to achieve reverse swing. However, the zoom-ins showed some dodgy actions from the Aussie opening batsman.

One instance showed Bancroft rubbing the rough side of the ball while potentially holding something in his hand before he polished the other side by rubbing it on his trousers. This was followed by him putting his hand in his pocket, which was seen as an attempt to conceal a foreign object. After that action, doubts began to creep in, with umpires also looking at the visuals on the big screen. 

Then came the major blow when cameras caught Bancroft transferring a tiny yellow object from his pocket to inside his trousers. The visual was seen by the umpires, commentators and all the players on the big screen in slow motion, immediately raising serious questions about the Aussie team’s conduct.

When Bancroft and captain Steve Smith were confronted by the umpires, the former produced a black sunglasses bag, claiming that was all he was holding. The umpires inspected the ball for any signs of tampering and noticed no visible marks that would necessitate the change of the ball or any penalty to the opposition. While the Smith and Bancroft temporarily averted any penalties, it was only the beginning of the nightmare.

What do the laws of cricket say about ball tampering?

Under the international cricket laws governed by the Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC), anything that alters the condition of the ball is prohibited. It is covered in Law 41.3, which allows players to to:

• Polish the ball on their clothes without the use of an artificial substance. The only natural substance allowed is sweat (with saliva being prohibited for shining purposes since 2019).

• Remove mud from the ball under the supervision of an umpire.

• Dry a wet ball using a towel or a piece of cloth approved by the umpires.

“It is an offence for any player to take any action which changes the condition of the ball,” the law states. Anything violating this rule is commonly known as ball tampering. It is usually done to make one side rougher than the other, achieving a phenomenon called “reverse swing,” where an older ball swings in the opposite direction to the conventional swing of the newer ball.

Historically, there have been other instances of ball tampering in the game as well, like biting the ball, using spike shoes to tamper with the rough side, scratching it with nails or using other abrasive material like the sandpaper that was used by Australia.

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Findings of Cricket Australia’s investigation: Smith, Warner, Bancroft face ban

The instance caught on live cameras was enough to prompt an investigation from Cricket Australia immediately following the end of the test match. The CEO of the board, James Sutherland, joined the investigators and the team in South Africa on March 27, 2018, and announced that the preliminary investigation found Steve Smith, David Warner, and Cameron Bancroft to be the main conspirators behind the ball tampering incident.

The object used for tampering, which Bancroft earlier called a sticky yellow tape, was later confirmed as the Sandpaper, leading to the infamous title of the scandal, “Sandpapergate,” by the media.

The investigation found that Warner developed the plan, Bancroft carried it out, and Smith failed to prevent it and helped Bancroft conceal the sandpaper from the umpires. All three were also found to have misled officials when initially asked about their involvement in the conspiracy. CA confirmed that these three were only players who knew about the plan and carried it out on the field. 

As a result of the investigation’s findings, Smith and Warner were removed from the leadership roles and faced suspension from playing international and domestic cricket for 12 months. Warner faced further punishment, with the board announcing that he will never be considered for the team's leadership role again. Smith’s leadership role was contingent on his repentance, behavior, and fans’ and players’ acceptance in the future. On the other hand, Bancroft, who was only playing his eighth test match, faced a suspension of nine months and faced similar contingencies on leadership roles.

Following the findings of the investigation, Steve Smith and David Warner addressed the media. Both of them broke down while addressing their actions, showing regret over the hurt they had caused fans and their family.

Australian wicketkeeper-batsman Tim Paine was named the interim Test captain, a position he maintained till 2021. South Africa went on to win the 2018 Test series 3-1 against the visitors.

Usman Khawaja’s bombshell allegations reopen Sandpapergate

In his autobiography Sabr, Khawaja, who retired from international cricket in January 2026, candidly talked about the 2018 Sandpapergate. Early excerpts from the book were shared by Australian media, with the Australian batter himself speaking about it in interviews to promote the release on November 10, 2026. 

According to media reports, he wrote in the book that the entire team, including the players and coaching staff, knew about the plan to use sandpaper before it was carried out on the field. In another striking revelation, Khawaja claims that the same tampering trick was also used in the second test match in Port Elizabeth, a match before the incident was caught on camera. Throwing shade over Cricket Australia, he reportedly called the board’s investigation hasty and not thorough at all. The Pakistani-Australian legend alleged that he was never questioned by the investigators despite sitting beside Bancroft when he was handed the sandpaper in the dressing room.

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When interviewed by the Australian media, Khawaja echoed the same stance, saying, “It was all of us. Not the batters, not the bowlers, not the staff. All of us.”

“100% accurate”: Warner backs Khawaja’s claims

In a video posted on his Instagram on November 9, 2026, David Warner supported Khawaja’s account of events as “100% accurate.” He thanked his fellow teammate for coming out with the truth while bashing the CA investigation. Warner said, “Now everyone knows the truth. It’s out there. Uzi [Usman] wrote down every single thing from that day on. This whole interview process was rushed and botched. Uzi was sitting next to Cameron Bancroft. Uzi was never interviewed. How is that a thorough investigation? It baffles me.”

He further said that he does not want to reopen old wounds or point fingers. Their purpose is to ensure the truth is properly examined and for people to demand answers from the responsible people rather than scrutinizing the one asking for accountability. Addressing the reactions claiming Khawaja has reopened the eight-year-old incident only to sell his book, Warner quashed it as his true story.

Warner claimed lots of inaccurate statements and silence over the last eight years from the ones who were responsible for the incident. Recalling the time he cried while making an apology on camera, the former Australian batsman called it a tough time, not just for him but for Bancroft and Smith as well.

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