Former Australia cricketer Ian Healy has reignited his war of words with Usman Khawaja after taking aim at the former opener over his autobiography, Sabr.
Healy criticised Khawaja for leaving out important details about the injury episode that led to him missing a Queensland match in 2024. The controversy comes days after Khawaja's book made headlines for his explosive claims about the 2018 Sandpapergate scandal.
Khawaja, who is 39-year-old, had earlier alleged in his autobiography that all members of the Australian team knew about the use of sandpaper during the Cape Town Test against South Africa in 2018.
ALSO READ: Pat Cummins' Tense Exchange With Wife Goes Viral As Usman Khawaja Reopens Sandpapergate Controversy
He also claimed that Australia had used the object on the ball during the previous Test in Port Elizabeth, now known as Gqeberha.
However, the book also revisited a separate disagreement between Khawaja and Healy. The former Queensland captain wrote about the criticism he faced from Healy after attending the Australian Grand Prix in 2024 instead of playing a match for Queensland.
Khawaja recalled being "absolutely nailed" by Healy over the decision. He also said that Healy had suggested he was only concerned about himself and was not interested in giving back to Queensland cricket.
Healy has now hit back at Khawaja, arguing that the autobiography did not provide the complete story behind the incident. He criticised the former opener for not explaining the full circumstances surrounding his absence from the Queensland match.
"He didn't even tell the team why he wasn't playing. I sussed it out with all sorts of medicos in our dressing room and the head of our high performance, and they denied the injury," Healy said, as quoted by SEN.
"They tested him structurally and his functionality, and they said there is no hammy (hamstring injury); you are right to play. He did not say that in his book. Then they said, 'Let's get it scanned this afternoon,' and he refused to get it scanned. That's what I was going on, and it was a shame he does not support his team better than that," Healy added.
The exchange has brought an old disagreement between the two former Australian teammates back into the spotlight, adding another talking point around Khawaja's autobiography.
"It was all of us. Not the batters, not the bowlers, not the staff. All of us," Khawaja said, as quoted by the Sydney Morning Herald. "In an ideal world, I don't want to do this. I don't want to be the one who comes out and talks about the truth. The issue is that I genuinely thought after eight years the truth would have been out by now," he noted in his book.
Meanwhile, Khawaja's Sandpapergate claims have also drawn attention from another former Australia cricketer, David Warner. Warner, who was handed a one-year ban and a lifetime leadership ban following the 2018 ball-tampering scandal, backed Khawaja's claims.
ALSO READ: David Warner Reacts After Former Australia Coach Calls Khawaja's Sandpapergate Claims False
Warner's lifetime leadership ban from international and Australian domestic cricket was overturned in 2024.
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