Pat Cummins on viral video with wife: No spitting, Becky was frustrated with Usman

Australia captain Pat Cummins has said his wife Becky was among those hurt by Usman Khawaja over the 2018 ball-tampering scandal. dealt with fallout from the renewed Sandpapergate controversy at a nearly hour-long news conference in Sydney on Friday.

Cummins responded to both Khawaja’s comments and a video of him and Becky in an animated exchange outside their home in Sydney, which was widely shared on social media. Denying the pair had been fighting, he explained that Becky was frustrated by Khawaja’s account and encouraged him to speak openly about the episode, which continues to affect those involved.

Captain of Australia spent almost an hour asking questionshe even joked that someone from the Guinness Book of Records should have been present. He also made it clear that this would be his only opportunity to speak publicly on the matter.

When asked about the footage, Cummins played down the suggestion that he and Becky had an argument, while also expressing frustration at cameras following his family.

“It’s half very comical. Becky wears her heart on her sleeve. And half ridiculous. We’re talking about something that was dealt with eight and a half years ago. Now I’m walking my daughter in diapers outside the house and I’ve got cameras following me and my family. It’s kind of ridiculous to me,” he said.

He went on to explain Becky’s reaction, making it clear that her frustration was directed at Khawaja’s account rather than him.

“But while we’re on the subject, because we think it was funny, we didn’t fight. Becky was very frustrated and animated and really unhappy with Usman,” Cummins said.

“We didn’t fight. Becky was very frustrated, animated and really not happy with Usman.” MORE: CODE Cricket (@codecricketau) November 12, 2026

“SHOW YOUR EMOTIONS”

Becky also urged her husband not to hold back when he spoke to the media, telling him that others are still hurting from the episode.

“She just said, ‘Show your emotions. There’s a lot of people who are hurt’. She said, ‘Be honest’ and tell the details. I was with Becky before that tour. She was with me,” he said.

The dispute centers on Khawaja’s autobiography Sabr, in which the former Australian opener questioned how much the team knew about the use of sandpaper during the 2018 tour of South Africa. His account suggested that responsibility for the ball-tampering episode went beyond the three sanctioned players.

During the third Test against South Africa in Cape Town in March 2018, Cameron Bancroft was caught on television attempting to alter the ball with sandpaper. Cricket Australia’s investigation led to lengthy suspensions for captain Steve Smith, vice-captain David Warner and Bancroft. Cummins was part of that Australian side and consistently denied knowing that sandpaper was used.

‘FLIPPANT, CASUAL, IRRESPONSIBLE’

His strongest objection was to Khawaja’s suggestion that the team knew about the use of abrasive material.

“When he says ‘we all knew,’ if he said ‘we all knew sandpaper was being used,’ I’m sure that’s 100 percent wrong,” Cummins said.

He questioned why Khawaja chose to revisit the episode in this way, while acknowledging that the former opener might still have mixed feelings about it. However, Cummins emphasized that the bill had implications for people not directly involved.

“It looks like it’s been hard on him for a while. It’s eight and a half years ago. I get it. Maybe it’s Usman’s chance and he never got over it at the time,” Cummins said.

“But these are real people’s lives and this is serious. It doesn’t just affect people, it affects people’s families. I’m one of the smaller ones, maybe I’m right there this week, but talking eight years ago was traumatic for those guys. For all of us, for Australian cricket, for the fans.”

Cummins also spoke about his long friendship with Khawaja, who was with him for most of his career in New South Wales and Australia. That relationship, he said, made the comments more difficult to accept, but didn’t change his view of how they were presented.

“I played for 15 years, my debut for New South Wales and with Australia, Usman was right there and he’s been amazing to me and he’s a friend,” he said.

“To bring it out so casually and casually, I think it’s irresponsible.”

Acknowledging Khawaja’s right to tell his own story, Cummins said he hoped the latest round of discussion would bring closure to the matter. He pointed out that the players had already answered questions during the original investigation and were forced to return to the episode in 2021.

“We were very consistent. We dealt with it at the time, we told everybody in the investigation everything we knew. We had to defend ourselves in 2021, we had to defend ourselves now,” he said.

“If we have to do this every time another book or idea comes out, it’s pretty ridiculous.”

– The end