New Delhi, Nov 12 — Australia Test captain Pat Cummins is set to break his silence over the bombshell ball tampering claims made by Usman Khawaja as the veteran pacer will address the media on Friday in Sydney.
Cummins has been criticised for remaining silent since Khawaja dropped a bombshell in his memoir Sabr, which detailed the events of 2018 Sandpapergate, that the whole team was aware of the sandpaper plot in the Cape Town Test. Moreover, he also revealed that the object was used during the previous Test match.
Cummins finally took to X on Thursday morning, said, "I'm training at Cricket Central tomorrow (Friday) morning before the Blues play in the Shield match. Happy to speak with any and all media about the events of this week at 9.30 am."
The 33-year-old also added that he has "taken some time to try and better understand the long list and full extent of Uzzy’s allegations so I can respond properly."
He further said, "Afterwards please stay and support the Blues! I'll ask CA to send out details."
Following extracts of the book being released in the lead-up to its official release, David Warner, who had faced a 12-month ban for his role in the ball-tampering controversy, backed Khawaja’s version of events.
Cummins statement on addressing the issue in a press conference came a day after Khawaja cancelled his book tour following an awkward TV interview in which he refused to confirm whether Australia's bowlers were involved in the 2018 ball-tampering plot in South Africa.
Appearing on the ABC's 7:30 programme on Wednesday, Khawaja said, “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 three guys and told my account. I think (former teammate) Chadd Sayers came out the other day and [backed me up]. I’m not going to speculate on behalf of anyone else.”