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Sandpapergate controversy deepens as ex-Australia bowler Chadd Sayers also claims ‘everyone knew’

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AFP. (2026, November 15). Sandpapergate controversy deepens as ex-Australia bowler Chadd Sayers also claims ‘everyone knew’. Dawn. https://www.dawn.com/news/2044703/sandpapergate-controversy-deepens-as-ex-australia-bowler-chadd-sayers-also-claims-everyone-knew

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Dawn · collected 2026-11-15 · by AFP

Quick Summary

Former Australian Test bowler Chadd Sayers has claimed that everyone on the team was aware of the ball-tampering incident involving sandpaper during the 2018 South Africa tour. Sayers, who was part of the tour but did not play in the Cape Town Test where the incident occurred, told SEN radio that discussions took place in the change rooms about using the ball illegally. He also mentioned that he was the player who took the sandpaper off the field after its use in the second Test at Port Elizabeth. This contradicts the official Cricket Australia investigation, which concluded that only Steve Smith, David Warner, and Cameron Bancroft were involved in the plot, and the recent denials by current captain Pat Cummins and other bowlers.
Written by AI on 2026-11-15, from this article's own text only (the story summary below draws on all the coverage).
See how they differ ↓

AI analysis

Story summary

Former Australian Test bowler Chadd Sayers has revealed that the entire Australian cricket team was aware of the ball-tampering plot during their 2018 tour of South Africa, contradicting the previous official narrative. Sayers, who was present during the second Test in Port Elizabeth (now Gqeberha) and the fourth Test in Johannesburg but did not play in the controversial third Test in Cape Town, stated that he personally disposed of sandpaper on the field during a drinks break before the Cape Town incident. This admission challenges Cricket Australia's 2018 investigation findings, which concluded that only Steve Smith, David Warner, and Cameron Bancroft knew about the plot. Sayers's claims align with Usman Khawaja's recent assertions in his autobiography and could put further pressure on current captain Pat Cummins, who has denied any prior knowledge of the scheme.

Written for “Sandpapergate Controversy Deepens” on 2026-11-15, grounded in this article and the 3 other(s) covering the same event.

How they differ

3 outlets covered “Sandpapergate Controversy Deepens”.

What each outlet says

One AI summary per outlet of its latest article on this story, written from that article alone and checked against it. Open the article for the outlet's own words.

DawnThis outlet15 Nov

Former Australian Test bowler Chadd Sayers has claimed that everyone on the team was aware of the ball-tampering incident involving sandpaper during the 2018 South Africa tour. Sayers, who was part of the tour but did not play in the Cape Town Test where the incident occurred, told SEN radio that discussions took place in the change rooms about using the ball illegally. He also mentioned that he was the player who…

Sandpapergate controversy deepens as ex-Australia bowler Chadd Sayers also claims ‘everyone knew’ (this article)2 articles from Dawn on this story
Sydney Morning Herald15 Nov

Former Australian cricketer Chadd Sayers has revealed that the entire Australian cricket team was aware of and participated in ball tampering using sandpaper during the 2018 series against South Africa, specifically in the Port Elizabeth Test, which occurred before the scandal broke in Cape Town. Sayers, who did not play in the Port Elizabeth match, recalls disposing of sandpaper given to him during a break in the…

‘Everyone knew’: Fast bowler reveals sandpaper was used in earlier Test →
BBC15 Nov

Former Australian cricket player Chadd Sayers has revealed that he helped remove sandpaper from the field during a match before the Cape Town ball-tampering scandal in 2018. Sayers, who was the 12th man during the second Test in Gqeberha, supports Usman Khawaja’s claims that the entire team was aware of the plan to use sandpaper, contradicting Pat Cummins' denial. Sayers also mentioned a significant meeting in the…

Australia's Sayers 'took sandpaper from field' & rejects Cummins' claims →

Compared with similar articles

This article reads leans right and hedges 11% of its claims. Each row says how that neighbour differs.
Dawn
Hedges 2 of 18 claims Outlet record 72/100
The Sydney Morning Herald
Hedges 3 of 51 claims Outlet record 61/100
BBC News
Hedges 3 of 13 claims Outlet record 66/100
The Sydney Morning Herald
Hedges 2 of 36 claims Outlet record 61/100
“The articles discuss different aspects of the sandpaper scandal, with Article A focusing on Warner's confrontation with Lehmann and Article B on Chadd Sayers' support of Usman Khawaja's claims.”
The Sydney Morning Herald
Hedges 2 of 23 claims Outlet record 61/100
“The articles describe different responses to the Sandpapergate scandal, with Article A focusing on David Warner's reaction to Graeme Hick's comments and Article B reporting Chadd Sayers' support for Usman Khawaja's claims.”
The Sydney Morning Herald
Hedges 8 of 36 claims Outlet record 61/100
“The articles discuss different testimonies regarding the 'Sandpapergate' scandal but describe separate statements and claims by different individuals at different times, rather than the same specific incident.”
Daily Mail
Hedges 4 of 45 claims Outlet record 70/100
“The articles discuss different testimonies about Sandpapergate but refer to distinct events and individuals.”
The Sydney Morning Herald
Hedges 2 of 8 claims Outlet record 61/100
“The articles describe different developments in the sandpapergate scandal, with Article A focusing on Warner's claims about CA's investigation and Article B reporting on Chadd Sayers' support for Khawaja's claims.”
The Sandpapergate Scandal Different event
BBC News
Hedges 0 of 4 claims Outlet record 66/100
“Article A does not discuss the Sandpapergate scandal, while Article B specifically addresses the controversy surrounding the cricket ball-tampering incident.”
Dawn
Hedges 3 of 28 claims Outlet record 72/100
“The articles discuss different statements and press events regarding the Sandpapergate scandal; Article A covers Cummins' press conference and Khawaja's book release, while Article B is about Chadd Sayers' claims on Sunday, a day after the events in Article A.”

Story

Sandpapergate Controversy Deepens
Sports · 4 article(s) covering the same event. See how they differ ↑
How this article was measured signals, leaning charts, publisher record, byline, topics and claims

Signals How these are calculated →

Claims extracted
18
sentences that state something as happening or true
Uncertain
11%
2 of 18 hedged ("reportedly", "may", "according to")
Leaning
Leans right
of the writing, not the subject · beta estimate
Publisher signals
72/100
Dawn's corrections and hedging, across everything collected from it. Not a measure of accuracy.
Outlets on this story
4
Sports
Same framing elsewhere
1
articles that frame the event the way this one does
Analyzed 2026-11-15 · how these are computed

How this is being covered How these are calculated →

Article leaning vs. publisher reliability
Source leaning vs. consistency

Publisher

Dawn · 3224 article(s) · 3 correction(s) detected
Running correction rate · 3 correction(s)

Who wrote this

AFP
1201 article(s) here · 1 carrying a prediction
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That information would’ve been pretty useful when I was forced to make decisions back in 2018.
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Wire or desk byline, not an individual reporter.
Also by AFP
Nothing else under this byline is closely related to this article, so these are simply their most recent.
All 1201 articles by AFP →

Topics

Australian Cape Town Cricket Australia Johannesburg South Africa

Subjects

Sayers PERSON · 4× Khawaja PERSON · 3× Warner PERSON · 3× Cricket Australia ORG · 2× Cummins PERSON · 2× Australian NORP · 1× Chadd Sayers PERSON · 1× Pat Cummins’ PERSON · 1× South Africa GPE · 1× Usman Khawaja PERSON · 1×

Narrative

A Cricket Australia (CA) probe concluded only then-skipper Steve Smith, his deputy David Warner and Cameron Bancroft were in the know, with all sent home and banned.
framing: assertive · carried by 1 article(s) · first seen 2026-11-15
That information would’ve been pretty useful when I was forced to make decisions back in 2018.

Claims (18 extracted, 2 hedged)

Former Australian Test bowler Chadd Sayers backed Usman Khawaja over his “Sandpapergate” claims on Sunday, contradicting Pat Cummins’ denials that he knew nothing about the ball-tampering plot. uncertain
he → back → plot
Sayers was on the tour of South Africa but did not play in the third Test at Cape Town in 2018, where sandpaper was used to help make the ball swing. asserted
ball → play → 2018
A Cricket Australia (CA) probe concluded only then-skipper Steve Smith, his deputy David Warner and Cameron Bancroft were in the know, with all sent home and banned. asserted
all → conclude → know
But Khawaja alleged in his autobiography last week that the whole team was aware, a claim strongly backed by Warner and now Sayers. “I believe that everyone in that side knew what was going on and what was being used,” the retired Sayers, who played in the fourth Test at Johannesburg, told SEN radio. uncertain
who → allege → radio
Khawaja also alleged sandpaper was used in the second Test at Port Elizabeth, with Sayers saying he was the one who took it from the field. asserted
who → allege → field
“It (sandpaper) was given to me to take off, so that wasn’t planned or anything. asserted
that → give → me
I was just the player who took the drinks out at the time,” he said. asserted
he → take → time
“It was used in two Test matches and there was discussions in the change rooms of how we were going to get the ball to reverse and what was going to be used.” asserted
what → use → rooms
Cummins, now the Test captain, held a lengthy press conference on Friday to rubbish Khawaja’s allegations, calling them “100 per cent wrong”. asserted
Cummins → hold → them
The bowling group of Mitchell Starc, Josh Hazlewood, Nathan Lyon and Cummins all denied publicly in a 2021 statement that they were aware of the plan. asserted
they → deny → plan
Cricket Australia have ruled out reopening their investigation. asserted
Australia → rule → investigation
Warner on Saturday accused the governing body of “a cover-up”, saying that “as far as he knew” they did not interview Hazlewood, Starc or Lyon at the time. asserted
they → accuse → time
“If that’s correct then how can CA push the idea that the bowlers didn’t know?,” he said. asserted
he → ’ → idea
After numerous media reports confirmed the bowlers had indeed been interviewed, Warner on Sunday posted another statement on Instagram. asserted
Warner → confirm → Instagram
“Just to clarify ‘As far as I am aware’ was the POINT,” he wrote. asserted
he → clarify → ?
“I was never told the bowlers had been interviewed or provided statements. asserted
bowlers → tell → statements
That information would’ve been pretty useful when I was forced to make decisions back in 2018. asserted
I → force → 2018
“Why weren’t we given all the evidence by CA?” asserted
we → give → CA
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