Despite recent revelations by Usman Khawaja, backed by David Warner, Cricket Australia (CA) chief executive Todd Greenberg said he found no “compelling reason” to reinvestigate the 2018 ball-tampering scandal.
“There’s absolutely no benefit in going back,” Greenberg told SEN radio. “That’s the clear position of the CA board. It’s time we’ve got to look ahead, and the matter was dealt with under a previous leadership back in 2018. And you know, trying to second-guess decisions from a previous time, or making an assessment through the prism of hindsight, it’s not something we want to do.”
Khawaja reignited discussions about the infamous incident that unfolded during the Cape Town Test eight years ago with the release of his autobiography, ‘Sabr’. The veteran Australian batter has devoted an entire chapter to the controversy, claiming that Steve Smith, David Warner and Cameron Bancroft were not the only ones involved. He further alleged that the team had also used sandpaper on the ball during the previous Test against South Africa in Port Elizabeth.
Warner backed Khawaja’s revelations, calling them “100% accurate”. Chadd Sayers, who was part of Australia’s squad in Cape Town and played in the subsequent Johannesburg Test, also supported the claims.
Greenberg was not part of CA in 2018, and none of the board members from that time remain with the organisation today. He also admitted that he had yet to read Khawaja’s book, although the former Australia opener had called him about it.
“We have said we’re comfortable with the outcome of the investigation based on the information we’ve received, that includes what we’ve seen from Usman and our position hasn’t changed on that,” he said. “I don’t see any compelling reason to open the investigation or revisit this again. I don’t think there’s anything that can be gained from that.”
Greenberg, who served as Australian Cricketers’ Association (ACA) chief executive from 2020 to 2025, said he had spoken to several players from that Cape Town dressing room over the weekend. However, their accounts differed from Khawaja’s version.
“I can assure you, there are lots of other players who have a very different version of events, and they’ve made that very public from the very start in 2018,” Greenberg said.
“They’ve been very consistent in their position right through until today, and based on my conversations with many of them over the weekend, I don’t think that will change either. We end up at the same intersection point, which is eight years ago; people have versions of events which differ from each other. And I completely get it. No one would like to get this chapter of Australian cricket closed more than me, but it is unlikely.”
Greenberg also informed that Pat Cummins, Mitchell Starc and Mitchell Marsh would address the media on the matter over the next few days.