Vaibhav Tripathi
Australian opener Usman Khawaja revealed that his emotional celebration after scoring a century at Edgbaston was influenced by previous experiences of Ashes tours to England, and him getting dropped from the side. He further noted that all the banter from the English crowd spurred him to prove his detractors wrong.
Khawaja’s century marked his 15th Test hundred, displaying his determination and patience. It is also his fourth century against England, but his first on English soil.
“I think it was a combination of three Ashes tours in England and being dropped in two of them,” Khawaja said in the press conference after the end of Day 2 “I don’t read the media, I genuinely do not read the media but when I’m getting sprayed by the crowd as I’m walking out there today and as I’m going to nets that I can’t score runs in England. So I guess it was just a bit more emotional than normal,” said Khawaja on his emotional celebration.
“I feel like I’m saying this all the time, same thing happened in India. Not that I have a point to prove but it’s nice to go out there and score runs for Australia and just to show everyone that the last 10 years hasn’t been a fluke.”
Khawaja reached the ton in the 69th over. As the ball raced towards the ropes, Khawaja erupted with a triumphant roar, displaying his immense joy and excitement. With an incredible display of celebration, he leapt into the air, tossing his bat skyward. Removing his helmet, he raised both hands towards the Australian dressing room, acknowledging his teammates for their unwavering support.