Usman Khawaja facts for kids

Usman Tariq Khawaja (born 18 December 1986) is an Australian international cricketer. He plays for the Australia national team in Test matches and also represents Queensland in domestic cricket. Khawaja is a left-handed top-order batter. He made his first-class cricket debut for New South Wales in 2008. His first international match for Australia was in January 2011. He has also played for different teams in England, India, and Pakistan.

Khawaja was an important player in the Australian team that won the ICC World Test Championship from 2021 to 2023. He scored the second-highest runs in that championship, with 1,621 runs. This was the most runs scored by an Australian batsman. In 2023, he received the ICC Test Cricketer of the Year Award, which is a big achievement in cricket.

Quick facts for kids
Usman Khawaja

Khawaja in January 2018
Personal information
Full name	Usman Tariq Khawaja
Born	(1986-12-18) 18 December 1986 (age 38) Islamabad, Pakistan
Nickname	Uzzie
Height	177 cm (5 ft 10 in)
Batting	Left-handed
Bowling	Right-arm off break
Role	Top-order batter
International information
National side	Australia (2011–present)
Test debut (cap 419)	3 January 2011 v England
Last Test	26 December 2024 v India
ODI debut (cap 199)	11 January 2013 v Sri Lanka
Last ODI	6 July 2019 v South Africa
ODI shirt no.	1
T20I debut (cap 80)	31 January 2016 v India
Last T20I	9 September 2016 v Sri Lanka
T20I shirt no.	1
Domestic team information
Years	Team
2007/08–2011/12	New South Wales
2011–2012	Derbyshire
2011/12–2021/22	Sydney Thunder
2012/13–present	Queensland
2014	Lancashire
2016	Rising Pune Supergiant
2018	Glamorgan
2021	Islamabad United
2022/23– present	Brisbane Heat
Career statistics
Competition Test ODI FC LA Matches 78 40 211 133 Runs scored 5,635 1,554 14,521 5,494 Batting average 44.02 42.00 43.87 45.03 100s/50s 15/27 2/12 41/71 14/32 Top score 195* 104 214 166 Balls bowled 18 – 174 – Wickets 0 – 1 – Bowling average – – 111.00 – 5 wickets in innings – – 0 – 10 wickets in match – – 0 – Best bowling – – 1/21 – Catches/stumpings 61/– 13/– 164/– 49/–
Medal record Men's Cricket Representing  Australia ICC World Test Championship Winner 2021-2023
Source: ESPNcricinfo, 5 January 2025

Early Life and Background

Usman Khawaja was born in Islamabad, Pakistan. His parents are Tariq Khawaja and Fozia Tariq. When he was four years old, his family moved to New South Wales, Australia.

He made history by becoming the first Australian cricketer of Pakistani origin to play for Australia. This happened when he debuted in the 2010–11 Ashes series. Before becoming a professional cricketer, Usman studied aviation at the University of New South Wales. He even earned a pilot's license before getting his driving license! He went to Westfields Sports High School.

Usman Khawaja got engaged in 2016 and married his wife, Rachel, on 6 April 2018. He holds dual citizenship for both Australia and Pakistan.

Domestic and T20 Cricket Journey

Khawaja playing in 2011

Usman Khawaja is a left-handed batsman who usually bats at the top of the order. In 2005, he was named the Player of the Australian Under-19 Championship. He also played for Australia in the 2006 U-19 Cricket World Cup in Sri Lanka.

He started his professional cricket career, known as first-class cricket, for the New South Wales Blues in 2008. In the same year, he achieved something special by scoring two double centuries in a row for the NSW Second XI team. No other NSW player had done this before. In 2010, he was chosen to be part of the Australian team that toured England to play Pakistan.

From 2011 to 2022, Khawaja played for the Sydney Thunder in the Big Bash League, which is a popular Twenty20 (T20) tournament. In one season (BBL05), he was the second-highest run-scorer, showing his great batting skills.

Khawaja also played for county teams in England. He played for Derbyshire in 2011 and Lancashire in 2014. He scored a century (135 runs) for Derbyshire. Later, in 2015, he became the captain of the Queensland cricket team. In 2018, he played for Glamorgan County Cricket Club in England's T20 tournament. He also played in the Pakistan Super League for Islamabad United in 2021. In 2022, he joined the Brisbane Heat and became their captain for the Big Bash season.

International Career for Australia

Usman Khawaja was chosen for the Australian squad for the 2010–11 Ashes series. He made his Test debut against England in Sydney on 3 January 2011. He was the 419th player to receive the Australian Test cap. This made him the first Muslim and first Pakistani-born Australian to play Test cricket for Australia.

In March 2013, Khawaja, along with some other players, was briefly suspended from the team. This was due to a team rule not being followed. He returned to Test cricket in the 2013 Ashes series.

On 5 November 2015, Khawaja scored his first Test century, making 174 runs against New Zealand. This was a great comeback after more than two years away from Test cricket. He also made his Twenty20 International debut for Australia against India in January 2016.

During the 2015–16 season, Khawaja was in excellent form for Australia and his T20 team, the Sydney Thunder. Many experts praised his improved batting. He also set a record as the first batsman to score a Test century in a Day-Night Test match played in Australia.

Khawaja celebrates after scoring a century against South Africa in Adelaide (2016).

In December 2016, Khawaja played his first Test match against Pakistan, the country where he was born. In January 2017, he celebrated a half-century against Pakistan by doing a "dab" dance move. This celebration got different reactions from people.

In April 2018, Cricket Australia gave him a national contract. He played a very important innings against Pakistan in Dubai in 2018, helping to save the match.

He was part of Australia's squad for the 2019 Cricket World Cup. However, he got a hamstring injury during the tournament and could not play the rest of the matches. He also played in the 2019 Ashes series in England.

Amazing Comeback to International Cricket

In January 2022, Khawaja made a fantastic return to international cricket in the 4th Ashes Test match. He scored two centuries in the same match, making 137 and 101 not out. This is a rare and impressive achievement.

Khawaja then toured Pakistan with the Australian team. He was the top run-scorer in that series, with 496 runs. He scored 160 runs in one innings and 104 not out in another, helping Australia win the series. For his outstanding performance, he was named player of the series.

In January 2023, he reached 4000 Test runs and scored his highest Test score of 195 not out against South Africa. Khawaja's great return to international cricket was recognized when he won the Shane Warne Test Player of the Year award.

2023 Ashes Series

Khawaja continued his excellent form in the 2023 Ashes series in England. He was the highest run-scorer for both teams, with 496 runs. His runs were crucial in the first two Tests, which Australia won.

In the first Test at Edgbaston, he scored his first Test century on English soil, making 141 runs. He also batted well in the second innings, scoring 65 runs, which helped Australia win a very close match. He was named the player of the match for his batting. Khawaja also became only the second Australian batsman to bat on all five days of a Test match.

During the series, Khawaja had a heated exchange with some members of the Marylebone Cricket Club at Lord's. This happened after a controversial run-out incident involving another player. Khawaja later said that the crowd behavior during the 2023 Ashes was "far worse" than anything he had experienced before. He mentioned receiving constant abuse and negative comments from some English fans.

Despite these challenges, Khawaja proved his critics wrong by performing very well in England. His "old school" style of playing Test cricket, focusing on staying at the crease and scoring runs steadily, was very effective.

Career Achievements and Centuries

Usman Khawaja has received several awards and recognitions for his cricket career:

• Wisden Cricketers of the Year: 2024
• ICC Men's Test Cricketer of the Year: 2023
• Shane Warne Men’s Test Player of the Year: 2023
• ICC Men's Test Team of the Year: 2022, 2023
• Australian Domestic Player of the Year: 2011

International Centuries

Khawaja has scored 15 centuries in Test matches and two centuries in One Day Internationals (ODIs). His highest Test score is 195 not out, which he made against South Africa in Sydney in January 2023. His highest ODI score is 104, scored against India in Ranchi in March 2019.

Test Centuries

List of Test centuries scored by Usman Khawaja

No.	Score	Opponent	Pos.	Venue	Date	Result	Ref
1	174	New Zealand	3	The Gabba, Brisbane	5 November 20151	Won
2	121	New Zealand	3	WACA Ground, Perth	13 November 2015	Drawn
3	144	West Indies	3	Melbourne Cricket Ground, Melbourne	26 December 2015	Won
4	140	New Zealand	3	Basin Reserve, Wellington	12 February 2016	Won
5	145	South Africa	1	Adelaide Oval, Adelaide	24 November 2016	Won
6	171	England	3	Sydney Cricket Ground, Sydney	12 January 2018	Won
7	141	Pakistan	2	Dubai International Cricket Stadium, Dubai	7 October 2018	Drawn
8	101*	Sri Lanka	3	Manuka Oval, Canberra	1 February 2019	Won
9	137	England	5	Sydney Cricket Ground, Sydney	5 January 2022	Drawn
10	101*
11	160	Pakistan	2	National Stadium, Karachi	12 March 2022	Drawn
12	104*	Pakistan	1	Gaddafi Stadium, Lahore	21 March 2022	Won
13	195*	South Africa	1	Sydney Cricket Ground, Sydney	4 January 2023	Drawn
14	180	India	2	Narendra Modi Stadium, Ahmedabad	10 March 2023	Drawn
15	141	England	2	Edgbaston Cricket Ground, Birmingham	16 June 2023	Won

One Day International Centuries

List of ODI centuries scored by Usman Khawaja

No.	Score	Opponent	Pos.	Venue	Date	Result	Ref
1	104	India	2	JSCA International Stadium, Ranchi	8 March 2019	Won
2	100	India	1	Arun Jaitley Stadium, New Delhi	13 March 2019	Won