Australia captain Pat Cummins has defended Usman Khawaja’s protest over the war in Gaza and said the Australian opener can “hold his head high” over his actions which were “not offensive”.
Khawaja was last week charged by the International Cricket Council (ICC) for wearing a black armband before the first Test against Pakistan in Perth to show solidarity with people affected by the war.
The batsman was also pictured in training with the words “All Lives Are Equal” and “Freedom is a Human Right” written on his cricket spikes in the colours of the Palestine flag.
The ICC denied permission for Khawaja to display a sticker showing a black dove holding an olive branch on his bat and shoes during the second Test in Melbourne which begins on Boxing Day.
The logo, which the 36-year-old wore during training on Christmas Eve, also had the words “01:UDHR” – a reference to Article One of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights – written on it.
The ICC said the stickers flouted its rules on messages that relate to politics, religion or race.
Cummins said Khawaja’s protest had the support of his team-mates.
“We really support Uzzy,” Cummins told reporters. “He’s standing up for what he believes and I think he’s done it really respectfully.
“As I said last week, ‘All lives are equal’. I don’t think that’s very offensive and I’d say the same about the dove.
“I don’t know the ins and outs of the application, but I think it is pretty vanilla, a dove.
“That’s Uzzy. I think he can really hold his head high with the way he’s gone about it.
“But obviously there’s rules in place and I believe the ICC have said they’re not going to approve that. They make up the rules and you’ve got to accept it.”
Khawaja, a Muslim, insisted the black armband he wore in Perth was for a “personal bereavement” and not politically-motivated.
Last week, he spoke about how the Israel-Hamas conflict had affected him.
“When I’m looking at my Instagram and seeing innocent kids, videos of them dying, passing away, that’s what hit me the hardest,” he said.
“I don’t have any agendas other than trying to shine a light on what I feel really passionately, really strongly about.”
Daniel Miller is a sports fanatic who lives and breathes athletics. His coverage spans from major league championships to local sports events, delivering up-to-the-minute updates and in-depth analysis for sports enthusiasts.
