'Write his name on sand and not yet on paper' - Wasim Jaffer backs Pat Cummins to lead Australia with a subtle sarcasm on Sandpapergate

Australia opening batter Cameron Bancroft’s recent new revelations on the Sandpaper Gate have left everyone with shock and irked the former cricketers and commentators alike. Former India cricketer and Punjab Kings batting coach Wasim Jaffer too is not impressed with Bancroft’s comments and has now backed Pat Cummins to lead Australia soon.

The former Mumbai Ranji player is known to take sly digs at many former cricketers most notably Michael Vaughan. Jaffer is always ready with his witty replies and loves to have fun banter. During one such interaction with the fan, the 40-year-old was asked about Cummins captaincy’s future since Bancroft made remarks about Australia’s bowlers being involved in the Sandpaper Gate saga.

Jaffer replied to the fan’s tweet with a cheeky reply and has supported Cummins as the successor of Tim Paine. The Kolkata Knight Riders pacer Cummins had a good IPL with both bat and bowl as he picked nine wickets and scored more than 100 runs with the bat. Jaffer heaped praise on Cummins and said:  “He’s one of the frontrunners. But write his name in the sand and not yet on paper,” Jaffer said.

Wasim Jaffer tweets on Pat Cummins

The Sandpaper Gate occurred during the 2018 Test featuring South Africa, which is again the hot topic of discussion because of Bancroft’s remarks about bowlers having been known about the ball-tampering beforehand. Former cricketers Ian Chappell and Michael Vaughan are not surprised one bit about the revelations made by the opening batter.

Chappell has fully backed Cummins to succeed in the captaincy role and has lent his support to the speedster. Apart from Chappell, incumbent Test skipper Tim Paine too has shared his opinion on the captaincy matter and has surprisingly told the sources that he is ready to back Steve Smith if he is again reinstated as the captain of the team.

Australia are set to tour West Indies in the month of July to play T20Is and ODIs. Both Smith and Cummins have been included in the squad. Apart from that tour, Australia are set to feature in the Ashes series which in all probability will have a new captaincy candidate.