- Khawaja will retire after the fifth Ashes Test.
- Hopes to inspire “different” young people.
- The slugger lashes out at media treatment after recent injury.
Australia’s star batter Usman Khawaja said on Friday he hoped his long Test career, which will end with his retirement after the fifth Ashes clash, will inspire “different” youngsters that playing cricket for Australia is possible.
The top-order batsman, who turned 39 last month, announced on Friday that he would retire from international cricket after his 88th Test, which begins on Sunday at the Sydney Cricket Ground.
Khawaja made his Test debut on the same ground in the final match of the 2010-11 Ashes series and has since scored 6,206 runs at an average of 43.39, including 16 centuries.
However, more than his runs, Khawaja was a standard-bearer for diversity in Australian cricket, given that he was born in Pakistan before growing up in Sydney from the age of five.
“I hope I have inspired many children along my journey, especially those who feel different, those who feel like they don’t belong, or those who say they will never make it,” Khawaja told reporters at a press conference.
“I felt all these things growing up and trying to be an Australian cricketer, but seeing is believing. And I’m here to tell you that you can do anything you want. You just have to keep trying.
“I am a proud Muslim colored boy from Pakistan who was told he would never play for the Australian cricket team. Look at me now. You can do the same.”
Khawaja batted for most of his Test career at the top of the middle order, but lost his place in the squad for the 2021-22 Ashes series to Marnus Labuschagne.
He was, however, called up at the last minute when Travis Head contracted COVID before the Sydney Test and revived his career with centuries in both innings.
Opening with Warner
After that, Khawaja progressed to form a successful opening partnership with David Warner, who retired from Test cricket after the SCG Test two years ago.
In that Ashes series he injured his back in the first match in Perth and missed the second Test before initially being left out of the squad for the third in Adelaide.
He was recalled again in the eleventh hour after Steve Smith suffered a bout of dizziness and, batting at number four rather than opening, scored 82 and 40 as Australia won by 82 runs to win the series and retain the urn.
Khawaja said his treatment by the media after his back injury in Perth was proof he was still treated differently to other players because of his background.
“The way the media and ex-players came out and attacked me…I resisted for about five days straight,” he recalled.
“It was pretty personal in terms of things like ‘he’s not committed to the team. He was only worried about himself. He played that golf competition the day before.’
“He’s selfish. He doesn’t practice hard enough. He didn’t practice the day before the game. He’s lazy. It’s the same racial stereotypes that I grew up with my whole life.
“I just want the next Usman Khawaja’s journey to be different,” he added. “I want you to treat it the same, not have racial stereotypes about who they might be.”
