Australia captain Pat Cummins has described as "utter nonsense" the allegation from ex-teammate Usman Khawaja that he knew about using sandpaper to tamper with a ball in a 2018 cheating scandal that rocked cricket. Cummins held an extraordinary news conference Friday to address the claims in Khawaja's autobiography, published this week, hours ahead Australia's home-season opening one-day international against England in Perth. Khawaja has said he published his account that the whole team knew of the plot in a bid to support the three players who received unprecedented and lengthy bans from Cricket Australia arising from the so-called Sandpapergate scandal. He's had public support from one them - his longtime friend and fellow top-order batter David Warner, who posted on social media that the Cricket Australia investigation at the time was rushed and botched. Cummins, who was part of bowling attack in that test at Cape Town against South Africa, rejected that and accused Khawaja of
Former batter David Warner on Friday accused Australian skipper Pat Cummins of throwing Usman Khawaja "under the bus" and asserted that what his one-time opening partner wrote in his autobiography about the 2018 ball tampering scandal was "true". Warner mounted a vehement defence of Khawaja after Cummins struck down the claims of Khawaja that the entire Australian team was aware of the ball-tampering plot that became known as 'Sandpapergate' during a Test series against South Africa in 2018. In a press conference in Sydney, Cummins said Khawaja's assertions were "utter nonsense" and accused him of being "casual and flippant" about the lives of those who were affected by the controversy. Warner said the Test skipper's statement disappointed him. "I still stick by Uzzy and what he's written in that book, because it is the truth, and I really, really support him," Warner said on Fox Cricket ahead of Australia's first ODI against England here. "I actually feel for him at the moment. I
The penalty against Cummins comes as part of the IPL's strict code of conduct rules regarding over-rate offences, which have been closely monitored by the BCCI throughout the season.
In Cummins' absence, SRH appointed Ishan Kishan as the stand-in skipper for the team, under whom the Hyderabad-based franchise has won two games out of the five games they have played this season
The medical check-up is part of a pre-planned recovery process and will be conducted under the supervision of Cricket Australia.
The list has been reduced from 23 players last year to 21 this year, with three available slots remaining unfilled, allowing selectors flexibility as the season progresses
IPL 2026 is almost here, but even before the start, the tournament has been hit with multiple injuries from CSK's MS Dhoni to SRH skipper Pat Cummins. Multiple players are set to miss early games
Sunrisers Hyderabad will take on Royal Challengers Bengaluru in the tournament opener of IPL 2026 on March 28
As the tournament approaches, all franchises will be eager to resolve these fitness challenges and ensure their squads are fully prepared for the season ahead.
Sunrisers Hyderabad will once again bank on their batting strength to win their second IPL title in 2026
Australia will enter the ICC Men's T20 World Cup 2026 without Josh Hazlewood, marking the first World Cup since 2011 without the country's Big Three fast bowlers
Despite the setback, Cummins remains optimistic about his recovery and the possibility of joining the IPL.
Cummins had been included in Australia's provisional squad despite not playing competitive cricket since the Adelaide Ashes Test in mid-December.
Cummins has been managing a lumbar stress reaction that first surfaced during Australia's tour of the West Indies in July
Mitchell Owen and Ben Dwarshuis have missed out on a place in the preliminary squad for the T20 World Cup.
He grinds, he hits, he absorbs, he refuses to crack. Australia would eventually clinch an unlikely victory.
Pat Cummins' recovery timeline now makes him a doubtful starter for the second Test at the Gabba on December 4.
Australia captain Pat Cummins says he's "less likely than likely" to play the Ashes opener in Perth as he continues recovery from a back stress injury.
A group of leading IPL franchises offered Australia captain Pat Cummins and his deputy Travis Head staggering multi-year deals worth AUD 10 million (Rs 58.46 crore) each to play exclusively in T20 leagues, but both players turned them down, according to a report. The offers, nearly six times more than what top Australian players earn under their board's central contracts, were made earlier this year as part of a push by IPL-backed investors to assemble full-time franchise squads, according to a report in the Sydney Morning Herald. "The offers, made this year by an IPL team group, were politely rebuffed by two of Australia's most valuable cricket assets, who remain firmly committed to the national team," stated the report. Senior Australian players earn around AUD 1.5 million (Rs 8.77 crore) annually from Cricket Australia (CA) contracts, with Cummins' total income rising to AUD 3 million (Rs 17.54 crore) including captaincy allowances. The report said the development came to light
Recent reports suggest that while a follow-up scan has shown some healing in his lumbar stress injury, it is still insufficient for a return.