Watch: Usman Khawaja Flies An Airbus A380
Usman Khawaja (Credits: Getty)

Looks like Usman Khawaja can not only hit a cricket ball far in the air but can himself fly too. Very few of you would have been aware that the Australian star is a qualified commercial and instrument-rated pilot. Cricket Australia’s official Twitter handle recently posted a clip showing the left-handed batsman trying out his hands on a plane.  Khawaja could be seen flying an Airbus A380.

Khawaja revealed he grew up with a fascination for the planes. He further revealed his father worked in Saudi Arabia for 5-6 years and the travelling played a part in him developing an interest for planes.

“I traveled a lot as a kid. My dad worked in Saudi Arabia for about 5-6 years, so I use to travel back and forth to see them and then come back here to play cricket. I just grew a fascination with planes. As I was coming towards the end, year 11-12, I thought ‘what about flying’. I found UNSW (University of New South Wales – School of Aviation), which offered both a degree to make my mother happy and get my license to get my wings,” Usman Khawaja said.

Watch: Usman Khawaja Flies An Airbus A380
Usman Khawaja (Credits: Getty)

He also said that flying helped him in cricket too, stating that he became disciplined.

“I think flying helped me a lot in terms of cricket. Probably the biggest way was discipline and keeping up with the learning, making sure you are on top of any changes that have happened. There are a lot of things that go hand in hand between flying and especially playing Test cricket. The discipline part of flying and discipline of being a sportsman, especially being a cricketer and being a batsman, I think there are a lot of similarities,”  he said.

Here is the video:

Usman Khawaja, meanwhile, is currently preparing for the upcoming tour of India. He is a part of both the T20I and ODI squads. Australia will play two T20Is and five ODIs in India, starting February 24 in Vizag. Khawaja, who finished the home summer with an impressive century in the second Test against Sri Lanka, will be looking to regain his top form ahead of the World Cup and the subsequent Ashes in England.

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