After failing in the World Test Championship final, there was criticism of Usman Khawaja’s game but he is not ready to give up. Australia will begin their 2025 Test cycle by playing against West Indies on 25th June. Although Marnus was dropped, Khawaja kept his place and if anything the opener batter has vowed to comeback and will help the young batter Sam Konstas as long as he can.
Earlier this year, Khawaja produced a career-best double-century against Sri Lanka, but his fortunes took a turn for the worse in the World Test Championship final after he failed twice against Kagiso Rabada. After New Zealand’s quicks earlier in 2024 and Jasprit Bumrah’s difficulties last season, that continued a trend of low returns against fast bowling. But in remarks following Lord’s, head coach Andrew McDonald essentially affirmed that Khawaja would be guaranteed a spot in the Ashes later this year.
In the previous WTC cycle, Khawaja was Australia’s top scorer overall and the second-highest-scoring opener behind Yashasvi Jaiswal. He maintains his longer-term record and thinks any decline is more a result of his position in the team during a period when top-order batting has proven to be difficult. Since the beginning of 2024, he has averaged 25.29 against pace, which is just slightly less than the 27.84 global average for all openers, but he averages 65.80 against spin.
“I can’t understand how I can [have a problem against seam bowling] if I can score so many runs in [Sheffield] Shield cricket or be the highest run-scorer for Australia in the WTC cycle,” he said in Barbados ahead of the opening Test. “I open the batting for Australia. So I get out to seam more than I get out to anyone else. It’s just part and parcel of the game.
“I wish I could face more spinners, but you don’t always get that opportunity. So, I’m facing the new-ball bowlers with the new ball every single time. I went back from Sri Lanka to domestic cricket and scored a hundred against Tasmania. I pretty much faced seam the whole time there [and] against Riley Meredith, who is one of the fastest bowlers in the country.”
“I understand I’m 38 years old. People will be looking for an excuse. [But] I think I’ve got a role to play: open the batting, starting off, and setting a good platform for Australia.”
Talking about Konstas, Khawaja said he is willing to help and grow Konstas as he makes his comeback against West Indies
“With young Sammy coming in, it’s an added role [for me],” he said. “To help Sammy along through his journey, trying to impart as much knowledge as I can. I won’t be around forever. But it’s very important that I can do whatever I can, obviously first and foremost, [to] have a solid partnership between us but then a bit of stability at the top [and] also guide him through this journey. He’s still very young, he’s a 19-year-old boy, and it’s quite exciting.
“There’s obviously this series and then a big Ashes coming up. [You] probably want a little bit of stability at the top. It’ll be tough to chop and change, and opening is a tough place. Mentally it can be very tough. Going out there against the new ball and sometimes just getting a good ball and low scores.
“I’m just looking forward to playing with Sammy, as much as on the field as helping him off the field. I’ve been through a lot in my life, a lot of ups and downs. There are lots of things I’ve seen throughout my career and most of them are not technical. More mindset things. If I can help Sammy through this journey, especially over the next couple of series, try and impart as much knowledge I can to him.”
Though, unlike Warner, Khawaja is not laying out a clear path to retirement, the Sydney Test at the end of the Ashes is frequently mentioned as a starting point for him. Australia won’t play Test cricket again until August, when Bangladesh comes to play a series at the Top End.
“For me, I feel like I have plenty to give still,” he said. “To be playing this series and the Ashes is the pinnacle. That’s the one we all love winning and being involved in… after that there is a bit of a gap between that and the next Test series. We’ll cross that bridge when we get there but for me it’s about making sure I stay in the moment. Because if I’m not in the moment, I don’t think I’m doing the right thing by myself and the team.
“I’m not the guy who’s going, ‘I want to play for another ten years’. I’m very attuned to whatever is best for the team [and that] is what I’m trying to do. I’m not here for myself anymore. I’m here for the team. I could have stopped playing two years ago, really. But I found that I was still contributing, still trying to be the best player for the team at that opening spot, trying to do what I can do, [and] that hasn’t changed for me. When it does, you guys will surely find out.”
