Revealed: Why Usman Khawaja Is The Only Australian Player To Wear Black Armband Against Pakistan

The first Test between Australia and Pakistan got underway on Thursday (December 14) in Perth. The hosts won the toss and elected to bat first. Usman Khawaja and David Warner came out to open the innings for the home side and the former caught everyone’s attention immediately.

He was seen wearing a black armband. While it is not unusual for players to black armbands, what made Usman Khawaja’s gesture unusual was that he was the only Australian player to sport the armband. The reason behind the gesture is to show solidarity with those suffering in the ongoing war in Palestine.

As per several reports, Usman Khawaja also wanted to protest silently against the ICC for their ‘double standards’. However, AAP reporter Oliver Caffrey has stated that the Australian star is wearing the armband in respect of those suffering in the Middle East.

Usman Khawaja is wearing a black armband during this Test in respect for those suffering in the Middle East. It's a personal choice

— Oliver Caffrey (@ollycaffrey) December 14, 2023

Usman Khawaja slams ICC:

Earlier, Usman Khawaja had vented his frustration at ICC’s rule after it barred him from wearing shoes with a ‘humanitarian message’. The left-handed batsman wore shoes with the slogans “Freedom is a human right” and “All lives are equal” at the Australian team’s training session on Tuesday and was planning to wear them during the ongoing Test too.

However, he eventually decided against it as ICC’s rules do not allows the players to display personal messages. Before the start of the Test, Usman Khawaja had slammed the rules, saying: “I just think that so much has happened in the past that sets a precedent. I mean full support of Black Lives Matter. There’s plenty of guys have written on their shoes before.

“Other guys that have religious things on their equipment, under the ICC guidelines that’s not technically allowed but the ICC never says anything on that. I find it a little disappointing that they came down hard on me but they don’t always come down hard on everyone else. That was probably the most frustrating part.

“But at the end of the day I can’t really do anything about it. All I can do is fight it in the appropriately and however I can. I’m not going to get emotional. There’s already enough emotion in this. I’m not doing this for any other reason than to spread the word and to speak for those who don’t have a voice. I always came in with good intentions and I’ll leave with good intentions,” he added.

"?️ Usman Khawaja speaks out on ICC's decision, highlighting past precedents. Expressing his view on what he perceives as unfair treatment. #AUSvPAK #Khawaja #CricketDiscussions" pic.twitter.com/TKwT4Tq893

— Hemant ( Sports Active ) (@hemantbhavsar86) December 14, 2023

Meanwhile, Australia have made a strong start with the bat. At the time of writing this report, they were on 101 for no loss with Warner batting on 63 and Usman Khawaja unbeaten on 34.