Khawaja learns from previous Ashes failures forward of ‘hardest’ problem
Usman Khawaja says he has discovered a lot from his two underwhelming excursions of England as he prepares for what he calls the hardest check for a top-order batter.
The 36-year-old opener might be integral to Australia’s possibilities of retaining the Ashes when the primary of 5 Tests start in Birmingham on June 16, following the World Test Championship [WTC] ultimate towards India at The Oval.
Khawaja toured England in 2013 and 2019 for a meagre return of 236 runs in six Tests at a median of 19.66. He was dropped halfway by means of the 2019 Ashes and spent nearly three years on the outer earlier than a triumphant return to the Test side that has reaped 1608 runs in 16 Tests at a median of 69.91, together with six centuries.
“England is, in my opinion, the toughest place in the world to bat for top-three batsmen,” Khawaja stated. “In 2013, I was quite young and it was a pretty s*** tour, if I am being honest. It was tough work. I learned a lot from that tour.”
“My last series there [in 2019] it was a tough series for batsmen. The whole tour will show you that, other than Steven Smith who was on another planet.”
Khawaja stated it was a “learning experience” with a few key takeaways.
“If I’ve learned anything, it is work hard, train hard and [when] going to England, go with low expectations,” he grinned. “You are going to fail as a batsman, but when you do score you try to cash in as much as you can.”
“I’ve been dropped seven times in Test cricket and I’ve come back, and there’s a reason for that…because I’ve always scored runs consistently in first-class cricket and fought my way back”
Usman Khawaja
It is the problem towards the England tempo duo of James Anderson and Stuart Broad that has Khawaja enthused.
“Anderson and Broad…they are unbelievable bowlers and tough work at the start,” he stated. “That’s what makes it so awesome when you do score runs and you contribute to a winning team, which hopefully I’ll do and others will do over there.
“When you do it towards guys like Broad and Anderson in England, it is simply that rather more satisfying.”
Khawaja believed that Australia had been too “reactive” in dropping players in the past, including himself, after the odd failure.
“I’ve all the time been huge on simply selecting your finest gamers and sticking with them as a result of they’re going to rating you probably the most runs persistently, and I believe over time in choice for Australian cricket, we have now chased our tail a bit of bit attempting to choose gamers in kind,” he stated.
“Form is short-term. Class is just not. I believe the brand new selectors, with [coach] Andrew McDonald up the highest, perceive that a part of the sport and therefore there was much more stability in deciding on and selecting gamers and sticking with them.”
“I’ve been dropped seven instances in Test cricket and I’ve come again, and there is a motive for that…as a result of I’ve all the time scored runs persistently in first-class cricket and fought my means again.”