‘Australian fans haven’t moved on’: Michael Clarke joins Sandpapergate storm as pressure mounts on Cricket Australia

Usman Khawaja and David Warner. (Getty Images) The controversy surrounding Australia’s 2018 Sandpapergate scandal has taken another turn, with former captain Michael Clarke joining a growing chorus calling for Cricket Australia (CA) to reopen its investigation following Usman Khawaja’s explosive revelations.Clarke believes Australian cricket fans have still not received the full truth about the ball-tampering episode and said the issue will continue to haunt the game until the investigation is re-examined. His comments come amid contrasting accounts from former teammates, with David Warner backing Khawaja’s version, Mitchell Starc standing by the bowlers’ earlier statement and CA chief executive Todd Greenberg ruling out further investigation.“We haven’t moved on. Australian fans haven’t moved on. They can’t believe what’s real. They won’t know the truth – until this (investigation) is reopened and the truth comes out,” Clarke said on 2DayFM’s Breakfast with Nath & Emma.

Clarke wants the whole truth to come out

Khawaja reignited the debate through his upcoming autobiography, Sabr, when he claimed that the entire Australian Test dressing room, including players and support staff, knew about the use of sandpaper during the 2018 tour of South Africa.The row first erupted during the third Test in Cape Town, where Cameron Bancroft was caught on camera trying to change the condition of the ball. Smith, Warner and Bancroft subsequently received suspensions, with the latter two also facing further sanctions.Clarke said the opportunity to find out the full truth was missed in 2018 and again when Bancroft commented on the involvement of other players in an interview with The Guardian in 2021.“We had an opportunity in 2018. The truth didn’t come out. We had an opportunity in 2021 when (Cameron Bancroft) made those comments (to The Guardian). The truth didn’t come out. Now we’ve got that opportunity. I’d just like to see what the truth is, let it all come out, allow people to finally tell the truth and move on,” he said.Clarke also raised questions about whether the alleged ball-tampering started before the Cape Town Test, as Khawaja claimed.“For me, there are more questions than answers right now. First of all, I want to know, did they all know? Because some players have come forward and said they didn’t. I want to know: did they know or not? That’s important information for us to get the truth. And did it happen earlier in the game? That’s also what I heard that (it didn’t just happen) Clarke added in Cape Town.”

Starc stands alongside the bowlers while Warner supports Khawaja

The latest developments have revealed sharply contrasting positions between members of the Australian party involved in the scandal.Warner, who received a 12-month ban for his role in the episode, publicly backed Khawaja, describing his account as “100% accurate”. He also criticized the CA’s original investigation as “messed up” and “rushed”.Meanwhile, Starc reiterated that his recollections had not changed from the position outlined in a joint statement issued by the four Australian bowlers in 2021.“I didn’t really pay much attention to be fair, obviously there are different opinions eight years ago,” Starc told reporters in Sydney.“At the time, we were drilled hard through the whole process and since then, and I guess I’m not going to speak for the pitchers, but where I stand, my opinion hasn’t changed. My memories haven’t changed since what we said in 2021.”The statement was issued by Starc, Pat Cummins, Josh Hazlewood and Nathan Lyon after Bancroft’s interview in 2021 raised questions about how much the bowling group knew. The quartet denied knowing that a foreign substance had been applied to the pitch to alter the ball.Starc also said that Khawaja’s claim that sandpaper was used during the second Test at Gqeberha was news to him.“I’ll let the listed authors explain,” he said.

Cricket Australia is refusing to reopen the investigation

Despite renewed calls for a response, Greenberg ruled out reopening the investigation, saying the CA remains satisfied with the original findings.“There are specific details in his book that contradict the versions given by others,” Greenberg said.“But we said we were satisfied with the outcome of the investigation based on the information we received.He added: “That includes what we have seen from Usman and our position has not changed on that.”Khawaja, meanwhile, took to social media to respond to suggestions that his revelations were aimed at boosting sales of his autobiography.“I’m very lucky, I don’t need money,” he said.Clarke now joins Warner in questioning the original inquiry and Starc retains the bowlers’ position as the Sandpapergate controversy continues to divide Australian cricket almost eight years after the incident.