What Australian batsman Usman Khawaja said while announcing retirement
Australian batsman Usman Khawaja has announced his retirement from international cricket. He will play his 88th and final Test against England in the final match of the Ashes series, which begins on Sunday.
The match will be played in Sydney, the same ground where he made his debut against England in 2011.
The 39-year-old Khawaja has played 87 Test matches in his career, scoring 6206 runs at an average of 43.4. He has scored 16 centuries in Tests. He has also played 40 ODIs and 9 T20 matches for Australia.
Khawaja was born in Pakistan and became the first Muslim player to represent Australia 15 years ago.
Khawaja announced his retirement at a press conference at the Sydney Cricket Ground, where his wife, two daughters, and parents were also present.
Announcing his retirement, Usman Khawaja said he is still battling "racial stereotypes." He said, "I'm a proud Muslim, a boy from Pakistan who was told he would never play for the Australian cricket team. But look at me now."
Usman Khawaja has scored 6206 runs at an average of 43.4 in Test cricket
A day before the start of the Ashes series, Khawaja played golf and subsequently suffered a back spasm in Perth. Khawaja said he was criticized for this because he is "treated differently." He said, "The way the media and former cricketers attacked me, I could handle it for a couple of days, but it went on for almost five days straight."
He added, "The way everyone attacked me regarding my preparation was quite personal. They said things like, 'He's not committed to the team,' 'He only thinks about himself,' 'He played a golf tournament the day before the match,' 'He's selfish,' 'He doesn't train hard enough,' 'He didn't train the day before the match,' 'He's lazy.'"
Usman Khawaja said, "These are the same stereotypes, racial stereotypes, that I've grown up with my entire life. I thought the media, former players, and everyone else had moved past all of this, but we're clearly not there yet."