Aussie cricketer Usman Khawaja got some heat after he skipped Queensland’s important match against South Australia. Instead, he went to the Formula One Grand Prix in Melbourne with his wife, Rachel. At first, people thought he just wanted to rest up for the World Test Championship final against South Africa in June. Turns out, he was dealing with a minor injury from the previous game, where he’d scored a century against Tasmania.
Things got messy when he was seen at the F1 race. Joe Dawes, Queensland Cricket’s head of elite cricket, wasn’t happy that Khawaja chose not to play.
Dawes told News Corp, I trust our medical staff, and they saw no reason why he couldn’t have played. It’s disappointing he didn’t play for Queensland when he could have. I have got players here ready to play.
Khawaja’s actions might mean he won’t be able to play in the final against South Australia.
Test spinner Nathan Lyon also went to the F1 race, but nobody seemed to care.
Lyon hasn’t played in any Sheffield Shield games for New South Wales since he got back from the Sri Lanka tour. He said it was because of his workload.
Since Australia’s top players aren’t tied to state teams, they don’t have to play in the Sheffield Shield or anything else.
But journalist Robert Craddock questioned Lyon’s reason.
Craddock said, Someone told me Lyon hasn’t been playing because of workload issues. Seriously? A spin bowler whose next big game is two months away? Steve Smith was in America last weekend when NSW were playing.
Craddock told Sen Radio, It’s become normal for players not to show up, especially since NSW has so many of them.
Queensland is playing SA in Adelaide next week for the Shield final, but it’s not clear if Khawaja will play since things are tense with the team.
On the other hand, Queensland and Australia batter Marnus Labuschagne supported Khawaja, saying it’s good he’s staying fresh for Australia.
Labuschagne said, We get that if we want him at his best, he needs to make sure he’s ready and not injured.
