England Captain Harry Brook Denies Seeing Ball-Tampering as Old Scandal Returns

England skipper Harry Brook stated he has never seen ball-tampering take place during his time in cricket. The 2018 Sandpapergate controversy recently made news again due to a new book by former Australian batsman Usman Khawaja. During a Test match against South Africa in Cape Town in March 2018, Australian player Cameron Bancroft was caught using sandpaper to change the condition of the cricket ball.

The Context

Brook was roughly 17 or 18 years old when the Cape Town incident occurred and had not yet started playing international cricket. Former England captain Joe Root also spoke on the matter recently, stating he did not feel the practice was widespread across international cricket during his own playing days. Meanwhile, Brook and Australian captain Mitchell Marsh shared a friendly moment during a promotional afternoon tea on the outfield ahead of their upcoming white-ball series in Perth. England is set to play eight white-ball matches against Australia, beginning at Optus Stadium.