Usman Khawaja was allegedly racially abused at Lord's in 2023 | PC- AFP
Racism has no place in any genre of society, let alone sports, especially cricket. Usman Khawaja, in his autobiography, Sabr, has opened a can of worms.
Earlier, his side of the story on the Sandpaper Gate of 2018 caused a whole lot of damage to Australian cricket and the cricketers involved. Now, the retired cricketer has opened up about facing racism in England.
Usman Khawaja on facing racism in England during Ashes 2023
England and Australia share a long history, both on and off the field, dating back to the colonial era. With a fiery battle in the Ashes, a lot is at stake for cricketers from both countries, as fans, the media, and other stakeholders get involved.
So, the Ashes 2023 was held in England and had similar heat involved. However, the English fans, irritated by the infamous stumping of Jonny Bairstow, crossed the boundary and racially abused Usman Khawaja, who is of Pakistani heritage, by the MCC members present at the Long Room.
In a portion of his autobiography, Khawaja wrote: “It was like a pack of dogs about to feast on their next meals. They were in unison, swearing, calling us “F**ing this", and "F**ng that”, “***** this”. I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. At first I just laughed, mostly in shock. Was this the Long Room? Part of the most prestigious, noble cricket club in the world, where the waiting list was over 30 years?"
"'As we kept walking, I pulled up when someone shouted right into my ear as there was only a rope and about 20 centimetres between us. It got worse. “Don’t you dare scream in my ear again, you d*head", I said to the first guy. Then as I walked on, and I heard someone else say, "Shut up, you P’”, I lost it," the former Test batter added.
Khawaja won Lord's for Australia, but courageous England levelled the series
Regarded as one of the finest Australian batters of his time, Usman Khawaja was among the top contributors to Australia's win at Lord's. He scored an emphatic 77 in the second innings before Stuart Broad sent him back to the dressing room.
His knock helped the Aussies post 279 runs on the board, setting up a target of 371 runs. England were at one point cruising in the chase, with the skipper Ben Stokes going all guns blazing after Bairstow’s controversial dismissal by Alex Carey, but the Aussies pulled the strings at the right moment. They won the match by 43 runs.
However, something triggered the English team in the right way, as they won the next match at Leeds before drawing at Manchester. The decider was again won by England, as the series ended 2-2.
