“I’m here to respond to Usman’s allegations. It’s been hard for me to understand exactly what those allegations have been. That’s why it’s taken me a few days.”
That’s how Pat Cummins began, before embarking on a press conference in which he promised to stay until every question had been answered. The Aussie media were finally exhausted after 68 minutes, a marathon by media scrum standards, and yet still shorter than many of the dozens of podcasts instantly recorded to dissect the latest missive in a story that refuses to die. Cummins wants this to be his last word on the matter but there is surely more to come. So how did we get here?
We started, or at least restarted, with Usman Khawaja on the front foot and the front pages, pulling the strings and unwinding the stitches of a scar that never fully healed. The early exchanges were perfectly PRed – even his phone call to Cummins letting him know he was writing a book became a news story. Cummins’ response then was as curt as his effort today was long. In between we had the bombshell, again curated, an exclusive given to the Sydney Morning Herald: “It was all of us. Not the batters, not the bowlers, not the staff. All of us.” Maybe he just wants to shift some books, as if a few Kindle sales is his route to generational wealth. Or maybe he knows that any missteps will be leapt on as a chance to close this whole thing back up.
In the UK, this whole saga has unfolded on a daily cycle, each new dawn bringing another development, a shifting of who holds the power. And it’s been, mostly, tremendous fun. We’ve had the sideplots. David Warner backs up Khawaja. Warner takes on former bowling coach David Saker. Warner takes on former head coach Darren Lehmann. Chris Broad, father of Stuart and a former ICC match referee, calls up a UK radio station to make his views clear. Cameron Bancroft, a central figure, adds a tantalising “at this stage” to his lack of comment, jimming the camera as he does so. Mitchell Marsh displays the kind of deadbatting that might just earn him a Test recall.
As for Khawaja and Cummins, Friday ends with Cummins in control, and Khawaja to play next. On Tuesday came an uncomfortable interview on ABC, with experienced broadcaster Sarah Ferguson pressing for details, rather than letting Khawaja just tell his story. Khawaja held back from fully explaining what he meant by saying “everyone” knew. What did they know? Did they know things? We might never find out, especially with Khawaja’s book tour since being ‘adjusted’.
Soon Cummins was building hype of his own, announcing ahead of time that he would address “any and all” media before a New South Wales practice session. His ‘till they drop’ presser was true to its word. Cummins was well prepared, as evidenced by the typed-up script salvaged after the event, but also emotional, charming, and forthright by turns. He won’t sue but has been told he could sue, he says. It was quintessential Cummins, and it worked. “He handled [the press conference] with aplomb and a degree of statesmanship,” writes Lawrence Booth in the Daily Mail. In a way, none of that should matter in a story of truth and untruth. And yet it does matter. Perception and public image has coloured this ordeal ever since Bancroft slipped that yellow sheet into his trousers.
For a moment though, what of truth? Is there a throughline here? A world in which both Khawaja and Cummins believe that they are telling the truth, as each seems to? As Gideon Haigh notes, “Cummins’s perspective places a greater accent on collective knowledge and Khawaja’s on collective responsibility”. Some of Cummins’ answers leave little room for nuance. Asked if he knew of a plot to tamper with the ball in South Africa, he simply replied, ‘no’. The opening burst itself was more equivocal. “When he says, we all knew, if by that he means that we all knew sandpaper was being taken out onto the field, he’s 100 percent wrong”. Is the bowlers’ reality that they suspected there might have been something going on, but they didn’t want to know the details? That would tally with Khawaja’s own account of the second Test against South Africa, describing a post-wicket huddle thusly: “‘Guys, it’s going heaps now. Just don’t do anything else to it, because it’s silly how much it’s going.’”
Even if it’s possible from the outside to square the two recollections, any chance of a resolution has long since dwindled. Cricket Australia don’t want another investigation. They had their chance to thoroughly examine what was or wasn’t discussed in a dressing room eight years ago and they botched it. No one will ever really know the truth of what went on. Maybe even Khawaja and Cummins’ memories have been massaged by what they each want to believe. And yet there is still much to be won and lost. Cummins’ exhaustive, exhausting oration was an attempt to win over the public more than to leave every detail exposed. What comes next will determine whether it worked.
Now the ball returns to Khawaja. The book tour still includes a promised appearance on The Grade Cricketer podcast on Sunday. Pulling out might signal an admission of defeat. A performance equal to Cummins’ would wrest back the narrative.
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