The arrival of Australian opening batter Usman Khawaja in India has been delayed due to visa issues. According to ESPN Cricinfo, the left-hander is scheduled to fly out to Bengaluru on Thursday, according to the latest developments.
The veteran batter posted a hilarious meme on Instagram shortly after the rest of the squad members and support staff had left Sydney. Cricinfo also reported that several visas arrived late, but it is unclear whether any other travel plans were altered.
After the Cricket Australia awards in Sydney on Monday night, the Australian contingent left in two groups for India on Tuesday and Wednesday. Khawaja, who was born in Pakistan but is now an Australian citizen, has visited India several times but has had difficulty obtaining a visa.
“We’ve played a lot of games in the subcontinent” – Usman Khawaja
In 2011, the left-hander was initially denied a visa to play for New South Wales in the Champions League T20 before appealing to the Indian High Commission. Khawaja was named Shane Warne Test Player of the Year on Monday in Sydney, following a stellar 2022 with the bat. Last year, the 36-year-old was Australia’s leading Test run-getter, with 1080 runs in 11 games at an average of 67.50.
He was especially impressive during the Pakistan tour, scoring 496 runs in three Tests at an astounding average of 165.33. He said ahead of the India tour, as a key member of Australia’s batting unit:
“We’ve played a lot of games in the subcontinent. Every single player, particularly the batting, has played in the subcontinent numerous times, and you take a lot from those experiences. Think the stability of this team is a big one, too. Every time I’ve gone to subcontinent, I’ve felt like there’s been a lot of chopping and changing, talked about horses for courses back in the day, it’s very hard to win cricket games when that’s happening, in my opinion.”
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