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Former Australia opener Usman Khawaja has opened up about a painful chapter of his life that he kept hidden from his teammates throughout his career. Usman Khawaja revealed that he was diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis at just 22.
The 39-year-old, who represented Australia in 88 Test matches, shared that the disease caused severe pain in his left knee and made him fear that his dream of playing for Australia could end before it had even started. He also shared his experiences in his upcoming autobiography, Sabr.
Usman Khawaja reveals shocking health battle, kept it secret from teammates
Usman Khawaja revealed that he played with a debilitating condition for his entire Test career. He shared that his condition became so bad that he struggled to walk even 10 meters. With doctors initially unable to find the cause of his pain, the former opener feared that he might have a life-threatening illness.
The former Australian batter was diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis, a chronic autoimmune condition in 2009 while playing for New South Wales during the off-season. Although the medical team, coaches, and cricket officials knew about his condition, Khawaja kept this secret from his teammates.
Khawaja said that he did not want special treatment and was worried that others might use his illness against him. Even the former Australian opener’s close friends David Warner and Michael Hussey were not aware of the battle he was fighting.
Usman Khawaja was quoted as saying by Australian Story, “I genuinely thought I was going to die. I went from this athlete who was playing professional cricket to not being able to walk 10 meters to the bathroom.” Amid this, Nic Maddinson sent home after poor run as Australia set to make changes for Cape Town Test.
Regular medication helped Usman Khawaja continue his cricket career
Khawaja relied on regular medication and injections to manage the disease. With the help of treatment, he returned to the field around six months after his diagnosis and continued chasing his dream of representing Australia.
He has now explained that the medication was crucial to his recovery and helped him continue playing cricket while living a normal life. Khawaja added, “Without that drug I would never have played cricket ever again or even lived a normal life again.”
Khawaja wants to inspire people with Autoimmune diseases
Having kept his struggle private for years, Khawaja now wants to use his experience to encourage others living with autoimmune diseases. He hopes his journey will show them that a serious illness does not have to stop them from achieving their goals.
Khawaja added, “If a person can play at the top level … as a professional cricketer with rheumatoid arthritis, then I think a lot of other people can achieve a lot, too.”
He retired from international cricket in January after becoming Australia’s 419th Test player. Born in Pakistan, he made history as Australia’s first Pakistan-born and first Muslim Test cricketer.
Khawaja’s fairytale comeback
His career had many ups and downs, and he was dropped from the team eight times. However, Khawaja made a strong comeback and became one of Australia’s most reliable batters.
One of his biggest moments came when he scored centuries in both innings against England at the SCG in his first Test after a two-year absence. Khawaja described the later part of his career as a dream come true, saying he enjoyed it far more than the early years.
Khawaja signed off by saying, “Honestly, I experienced a fairytale. I literally could not in my wildest dream have ever written up a script like that. The second half, I enjoyed much more than the first. I was scoring runs, going around the world. Absolute gift.”
