Usman Khawaja has offered a riposte to Faf du Plessis’ accusations about how Australia obtained reverse swing during the first Test of the infamous 2018 series, while admitting the team’s behaviour had “instigated” plenty of ugly scenes in that encounter among others.
Former South Africa captain du Plessis’ allegation, in his forthcoming book, that Australia tampered with the ball in Durban has reopened discussions about the scandal ahead of this summer’s Test series between the two nations.
Team sources have emphatically denied Du Plessis’ suggestion on the basis that the Kingsmead pitch square was exceptionally dry and abrasive at the time, allowing the ball to scuff up naturally – unlike later matches in the same series.
South Africa’s Kagiso Rabada takes a wicket during the 2018 series against Australia.Credit: Michael Sheehan
In Perth six years ago, Khawaja was bowled by a sharp, late reverse inswinger from Kagiso Rabada with a 40-over-old ball, a moment he recalled as incongruous relative to the way the ball usually behaved at the WACA Ground.
He also noted how the Proteas had got the ball to swerve in the second Test of the 2018 series in Port Elizabeth, during a series he agreed was not played in the right spirit and had been a watershed for the behaviour of the Australian men’s team. In his book, Du Plessis does not deny his side had also pushed the boundaries in search of movement.
“Even in the second Test of that series [in Port Elizabeth], South Africa reverse swung the ball before we did,” Khawaja told The Age and The Sydney Morning Herald at the Twenty20 World Cup game between India and Pakistan at the MCG. “So for him to say that ... they were reverse swinging it before we were. It’s easy pointing fingers but I remember Kagiso Rabada blew my stumps apart at the WACA, reverse swinging it first innings and that was after 40 overs.
“So they were always very good at reverse swinging and it’s very rare to see reverse swing at the WACA other than on day five. So while he says that, there was a period of time where reverse swing was very prominent in the game. How every team was doing it, I can’t really speak for that, but I giggled to myself when I saw those comments.”
What Khawaja is more serious about is his strong belief that the Australian team had, as of early 2018, lost its way in a behavioural sense, and that he hoped this summer’s Test series against South Africa would be a chance to play the game very differently.
“I think that whole [2018] series from my personal point of view wasn’t played in the best spirit of the game,” he said. “From our side I never liked it, even from the first game [in Durban], a lot happened that game, and I just thought the spirit was lost.
“I think we’re a very different Australian cricket team now, the way we play cricket is very different. We haven’t played each other since then in Test cricket and I like to think that the most important thing is we play this Test series coming up in the right spirit.”
Usman Khawaja bats during the 2018 South Africa series.Credit: AP
Tellingly, Khawaja stated it was still on the Australian side to set the standard for better behaviour in series, as opponents still carry memories of past encounters that were ill-tempered or worse.
“We instigated a lot of that [ill feeling] during that time and hopefully we can have a really good, competitive series and play it as something we can be proud of,” he said. “No matter who wins, we say it was hard fought like it always is with South Africa, but it was fair and played in the right spirit of the game.
“For me that’s the most important thing, we’ve had a few series against South Africa that got really heated and both teams pushed the boundaries a bit too much.”
Like Glenn Maxwell earlier this year, Khawaja said he had found it difficult at times to conform to past team mantras that forbade contact with opposition players until the end of a series. In the case of South Africa, he made a point of socialising with Hashim Amla even if teammates queried it.
“That’s what it was like at the time, that obviously stemmed from the top and I didn’t really agree with it,” Khawaja said. “I was quite open and honest, I used to go out and have dinners with Hashim Amla, and some of the boys would be like ‘what are you doing having dinner with Hashim Amla’ and I’d be like ‘I’m having dinner with him, try and stop me’. I always thought part of international cricket is bringing teams closer together.
“I really like a lot of the South African guys, I have a lot of time for a lot of South African players. When you talk to them off the field, one on one, they’re very humble and they’re really good people. Their country has been through a lot in the last few years and they have a lot of perspective because of that. So I did find that a little bit off putting but I don’t think that’s the case now.”