Former Australian captain, Ricky Ponting has expressed his concern over the future of Usman Khawaja’s career in Test cricket. The multi-time World Cup-winning captain has become an important member of the Australian cricket development for the future.
In case you did not know, Khawaja had recently boasted of his talent, citing that he is one of the top six Test batsmen in Australia at the moment. However, his current form and statistics give the opposite conclusion. The selectors have lost their faith in him of late.
Talking to ABC Grandstand, Ponting made the following statements on Monday (18th May)
“I honestly think now he’s going to find it difficult [to regain his place] and I feel for him. I love Usman Khawaja, I got really close to him over the last 10 years since he made his debut and I talk to him quite regularly.”
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As Khawaja lost his place in the list of centrally contracted players of Cricket Australia, Ponting further continued:
“I’ve always felt he’s a very good player and we probably never saw the absolute best of him at international cricket. We saw glimpses of it, and dribs and drabs, but not the consistently good player I thought he could have been for Australia.”
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In the end, one can say that the rise of Marnus Labuschagne in Test cricket has closed the doors for Usman Khawaja. The left-handed batsman may find it really hard to make it back to the Test squad now.
