Cricket Australia CEO Todd Greenberg has backed Usman Khawaja after the opener faced questions over his decision to play golf before the first Test against England in Perth.
Greenberg made it clear that there was nothing wrong with Khawaja playing golf to relax before a big match. Speaking to SEN, he said, “It is drawing a long bow” to clarify that playing golf did not caused Khawaja’s back trouble.
He added, “Did that correlate to any of the issues? I personally don’t think so. Usman’s a very seasoned campaigner, he knows his body well, and he knows how to get himself prepared for cricket.” Greenberg also reminded everyone that “[Golf] has held him in good stead over the last couple of years. It’s not uncommon for a lot of them to play golf a day prior.”
The opener suffered sudden back spasms on the opening day, which forced him to leave the field during England’s first innings. Khawaja felt the pain at a tricky moment during England’s batting collapse, and stand-in captain Steven Smith called him back while he was trying to stretch out the discomfort.
Khawaja had played golf on Tuesday and Wednesday around Australia’s training sessions, and he also skipped optional practice on Thursday to play with Mitchell Starc and Scott Boland.
Many Australian coaches also played golf that afternoon. Greenberg stressed the importance of mental breaks for players, saying, “A lot of people talk about cricket being played between the ears. So getting some time away from being in your hotel or at training I think is really important. I noticed Mitch Starc played golf with him, so it certainly didn’timpact his performance.”
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