Warner fires back at Cummins after 'nonsense' claims

In a dramatic address ahead of the first ODI of the summer, Warner said he would not accept different versions of events "until the truth is out there".

The former vice-captain also said he was still hurt by being called "architect" of the 2018 plot, for which only he, Steve Smith and Cameron Bancroft were suspended.

"Pat Cummins was very well prepared this morning and I still stick by Uzzy and what he has written in that book," Warner said on Kayo Cricket. 

"It is the truth.

"I actually feel for him (Khawaja) at the moment. I actually feel that the captain today threw Uzzy under the bus and I'm very disappointed by that."

Included in Khawaja's bombshell revelations were that Australia had used sandpaper in the Test prior to Bancroft being caught by cameras in Cape Town in 2018.

Khawaja also implied the entire team knew of a ball-tampering plot, and that Warner, Bancroft and Smith were victims of a rushed review that found only that trio had knowledge.

Cummins made a point to agree the group were dealt with harshly, but said Khawaja's claims were "complete nonsense" and suggested they were "probably defamatory".

"When he says we all knew, if by that he means that we knew sandpaper was going out in the field, he's 100 per cent wrong," Cummins told a packed press conference in Sydney.

"I've said that consistently for the last eight years. I did not know that was happening.

"But Usman actually says things that are actually far more serious than that. He says that I and others were architects of a scheme to ball tamper with sandpaper.

"That's complete and utter nonsense."

Cummins said he and others had no memory of Khawaja pushing for the side to take collective responsibility in a team meeting after Cape Town.

He pushed back on any knowledge of sandpaper at the start of sessions in the previous Test at Port Elizabeth, or it being experimented with in the change rooms.

Cummins did, however, reveal that sandpaper had been used previously in Australian training, to help prepare batters to face reverse-swinging balls.

In a bid to offer context, the Test captain detailed levels of ball management and modes of tampering he claimed he'd seen from rivals, and one instance with NSW in Sheffield Shield.

He also pointed to a win-at-all-costs attitude around the Australian set-up in the lead-up to 2018, admitting he did not like the way the team acted.

But Cummins insisted he never knew of an Australian team illegally tampering with the ball until he saw Bancroft doing so on the big screen in Cape Town.

"Usman's a friend, but friends aren't casual with each other's lives and reputations," Cummins said.

"In his book, Uzzy's been casual with my life and the lives of many others, and Australian cricket.

"I support his right to tell a story. I'm really glad that he feels like he can. But we have to be accountable for the things that we say and do."

Cummins said it was up to Cricket Australia whether it would reopen the investigation into the matter, something the organisation has already ruled out.

But he made clear he wanted to move on from the scandal, declaring his willingness to take every question on Friday because it would be the last time he speaks about it.

"I did get advised this week that some of the things that (Khawaja) said are probably defamatory," Cummins said. 

"But I won't be doing that. You've got to move on. It's been eight years."

Now the Australia captain, Cummins pointed out that at the time of the scandal in South Africa he was a 24-year-old just 13 Tests into his career.

He said he had not spoken to Warner since his backing of Khawaja's claims, and could not explain why their position was so different to his.

"That sounds like a pretty good question for those two," Cummins said. 

"They've got two accounts ... there's nine other guys who I think it's appropriate you give an equal amount of weight into their story as well."