Former England cricketer and match referee Chris Broad has launched a scathing attack on former Australia head coach Darren Lehmann over the 2018 ball-tampering scandal, questioning how he could have been unaware of the incident and arguing that he escaped accountability.Broad’s comments come amid fresh revelations by former Australia batter Usman Khawaja, who has claimed in his upcoming autobiography, Sabr, that the entire Australian squad, including players and support staff, knew about the ball-tampering episode during the tour of South Africa.Taking aim at Lehmann, who was Australia’s head coach at the time, Broad questioned how he could have remained unaware of what was happening within the dressing room.“Darren Lehmann surely knew all about it,” Broad said on Track Radio, as quoted by Fox Sports. “And if he did not, he should not have been the coach at the time. I think he has got away lightly … OK, he left his job a few months later, but he did not get any sanctions.”
Broad recalls Lehmann’s attack on Stuart Broad
The former England player also brought up Lehmann’s criticism of his son, former England fast bowler Stuart Broad, during the 2013 Ashes series.Stuart had refused to walk after edging a delivery to the slips, prompting Lehmann to publicly criticise him. The then Australia coach subsequently warned that his side would make the England pacer “cry” when they toured Australia.Drawing a contrast with Lehmann’s conduct during the 2018 scandal, Chris Broad questioned how the former coach could have denied knowledge of the incident.“And here he is, the coach of the Australian cricket team that brought sandpaper out onto the field of play and denied any knowledge of this happening. I am very angry at Darren Lehmann in this respect,” Broad said.
Khawaja’s revelations reopen Sandpapergate debate
The controversy erupted during the third Test against South Africa in Cape Town in March 2018, when Cameron Bancroft was caught attempting to alter the condition of the ball using sandpaper. Then captain Steve Smith and vice-captain David Warner were handed one-year bans from competitive cricket, while Bancroft received a nine-month suspension from international and domestic cricket.Khawaja has argued that the responsibility for the episode was collective and that Smith, Warner and Bancroft should not have been left to shoulder the blame alone. He also questioned Cricket Australia’s investigation, claiming that several members of the team were not interviewed despite allegedly having knowledge of the incident.In his autobiography, Khawaja further alleged that Australia had used sandpaper during the second Test in Gqeberha, before the episode came to light in Cape Town. He also made claims about attempts to alter the ball during the 2017-18 home Ashes series, alleging that players had lifted the quarter-seam to facilitate reverse swing. Australia won the third Test in Perth by an innings, a victory that helped them regain the Ashes.Broad’s criticism has also received unexpected support from former Australia opener David Warner, who was among the players handed a one-year ban following the Cape Town scandal.“I could not agree more, and that’s hard for me to say!” Warner wrote on X in response to Broad’s comments.
