Australia v Pakistan, first Test: Usman Khawaja releases video vowing to fight shoe ban

A defiant Usman Khawaja has vowed to keep fighting for the right to wear a pro-Palestinian message on his shoes, staring down his critics in an emotional video. WATCH HERE

A defiant Usman Khawaja has vowed to keep fighting for the right to wear a pro-Palestinian message on his shoes while staring down his critics and insisting he isn’t taking sides in the ongoing Israel-Hamas war.

Hours after Cricket Australia confirmed Khawaja would adhere to ICC rules by not sporting shoes with the sentiments “Freedom is a human right” and “All lives are equal” during the first Test, the veteran opener took to Instagram, posting an impassioned video in which he made it clear that he was following the governing body’s regulations begrudgingly.

While Australian captain Pat Cummins had earlier said that Khawaja’s message could not be construed as divisive, that view was at odds with the reality behind the scenes after senior Australian cricket officials were left disappointed by Khawaja’s stance and former Test players made it clear they strongly disagreed with the opener’s eventually thwarted idea to politicise the playing field.

Khawaja effectively confirmed as such in his video, revealing the extent of the pushback to his plan.

“I’ve noticed what I’ve written on my shoes has caused a little bit of a stir. I won’t say much, I don’t need to. But what I do want is for everyone who did get offended is to ask yourself these questions: ‘Is freedom not for everyone? Are all lives not equal? To me personally it doesn’t matter what race, religion or culture you are,” Khawaja said.

All Lives are Equal. Freedom is a Human right. I'm raising my voice for human rights. For a humanitarian appeal. If you see it any other way. That's on you... pic.twitter.com/8eaPnBfUEb

— Usman Khawaja (@Uz_Khawaja) December 13, 2023

“Let’s be honest about it. If me saying ‘all lives are equal’ has resulted in people being offended to the point where they are calling me up and telling me off, well isn’t that the bigger problem? These people obviously don’t believe in what I’ve written. And it’s not just a handful of people. You’d be shocked about how many feel this way. What I’ve written on my shoes isn’t political. I’m not taking sides. Human life to me is equal. One Jewish life is equal to one Muslim life is equal to one Hindu life, and so on.

“I’m just speaking up for those who don’t have a voice. This is close to my heart. When I see thousands of innocent children dying without any repercussions or remorse, I imagine my two girls. What if this was them? No one chooses where they’re born. And then I see the world turn their backs on them. My heart can’t take it. I already feel my life wasn’t equal to others when I was growing up. But luckily for me, I never lived in a world where that lack of inequality was life or death.

“The ICC have told me that I can’t wear my shoes on the field because they believe it’s a political statement under their guidelines. I don’t believe it is so. It’s a humanitarian appeal. I will respect their view, and their decision but I will fight it and seek to gain approval. Freedom is a human right, and all lives are equal. I will never stop believing that, whether you agree with me or not.”

The veteran had trained in the Perth nets on Tuesday wearing shoes with the humanitarian slogans written in Palestinian colours, a clear reference to the ongoing war.

Khawaja, an observant Muslim, had planned to wear the shoes during the first Test against Pakistan, the nation of his birth, beginning at Optus Stadium on Thursday.

However, after a series of high-level talks involving Cricket Australia, the ICC and the Australian Cricketers’ Association, Khawaja eventually backed down, with Cummins claiming that the batter had not wanted to generate too great a fuss.

Usman Khawaja’s planned footwear for the Perth Test has caused a stir. Picture: Paul Kane/Getty Images

Cummins confirmed Khawaja would still form part of the XI. It is unclear whether he will continue to don the message in future training sessions.

CA and Cummins stressed that ICC regulations clearly prohibited Khawaja from donning garb with such messages during a match.

“We support the right of our players to express personal opinions,” CA said just minutes before Cummins was due to appear for his routine pre-match press conference.

“But the ICC has rules in place which prohibit the display of personal messages which we expect the players to uphold.”

Cummins, who has been outspoken on other social issues, said he encouraged Khawaja’s general stance on the humanitarian situation in Gaza but that ultimately rules needed to be followed.

“I think it’s one of our strongest points in our team is that everyone has their own passionate views and individual thoughts and yeah, chatted to Ussie briefly about it today and I don’t think his intention is to make too big of a fuss. We support him,” Cummins said.

“I spoke to him just quickly and he said he won’t be (wearing the shoes).

“(Authorities) kind of drew the attention to the ICC rules which I don’t know if Ussie was across beforehand, but yeah, again, Ussie doesn’t want to make too big of a fuss. On his shoes he had ‘all lives are equal.’ I think that’s not very divisive. I don’t think anyone can really have too many complaints about that.

“And as I said, I think what was on the shoes, all lives are equal. I mean, I support that.”

Questioned how Khawaja’s situation differed to the repeated knees taken by cricket teams in support of the Black Lives Matter movement, Cummins said: “I know the ICC rules are quite specific to writing.”

The ICC’s regulations state that: “Any clothing or equipment that does not comply with these regulations is strictly prohibited. In particular, no logo shall be permitted to be displayed on cricket clothing or cricket equipment, other than a national logo, a commercial logo, an event logo, a manufacturer’s logo, a player’s bat logo, a charity logo or a non-commercial logo as provided in these regulations.

Pat Cummins moves to ease tensions over Khawaja’s planned protest. Picture: Paul Kane/Getty Images

“In addition, where any match official becomes aware of any clothing or equipment that does not comply with these regulations, he shall be authorised to prevent the offending person from taking the field of play (or to order them from the field of play, if appropriate) until the non-compliant clothing or equipment is removed or appropriately covered up.”

In the hours before CA released its statement, several former players said Khawaja was out of line in his plans, while some senior Australian cricket officials were miffed at what they viewed as a view that had potential to alienate some members of the public.

Pakistan great Wasim Akram, in Perth to commentate the Test for Fox, said that Khawaja should leave his stand off the field.

“I can understand the pain people must be going through all over the world,” Akram told this masthead.

“What’s happening in Palestine and in Israel, both. But … if you want to do it, do it outside the sport, take a video, donate, whatever you can do, please do, but I think sports should be a little cleaner, straightforward in my book.”

Usman Khawaja. Picture: Will Russell/Getty Images

Former Australian opener Greg Ritchie shared similar sentiments.

“Representing Australia on the cricket field is a very, very special honour,” Ritchie said.

“In my opinion, the cricket field is no place to be airing your political views, whatever they may be.

“As a Queenslander, the state that Khawaja represents, and as a former Test cricketer, I hope that both associations stop Khawaja from going ahead with this.”

Former Test all-rounder Simon O’Donnell agreed.

“I fully respect Usman Khawaja’s beliefs personally … he should be able to state his beliefs on his own platform. But while he’s representing Australia he has no right, nil, zero, to bring his personal beliefs and instil those onto others,” O’Donnell told SEN.

Khawaja has been vocal on the war in recent weeks on social media. He last week quoted a CNN report about the conflict on the social media website Threads, writing “How do the Governments just sit and watch this. Killing innocent lives that have no way of protecting or defending themselves. #thisisntwar.”

On Instagram he also posted: “Do people not care about innocent humans being killed? Or is it the colour of their skin that makes them less important? Or the religion they practice? These things should be irrelevant if you truly believe that ‘we are all equal’. #gaza #humanity #equality #alllivesmatter.”

Federal Sports Minister Anika Wells said Khawaja had her full support in making a personal stance and she believed it did not contravene any laws in cricket.

“As Federal Sport Minister I have always advocated for athletes having the right to a voice and to speak up on matters important to them,” Minister Wells said.

“Usman Khawaja is a great athlete and a great Australian. He should have every right to speak up on matters that are important to him.

“He has done so in a peaceful and respectful way. He has done so as an individual and expressed an individual opinion that does not compromise the Australian cricket team’s obligations to the ICC.”

Originally published as Australia v Pakistan, first Test: Usman Khawaja releases video vowing to fight shoe ban