Far away from Usman Khawaja’s protest, it’s 1970, and the International Cricket Council has officially announced a ban on the Apartheid practices of the Republic of South Africa. It was needed. Of course, it was. There were discriminatory team selection policies that exclusively favoured white players in the national team. There is no place for racism in cricket. ICC deems all lives to be equal, every person has an equal chance to play the game.
Fast forward 43 years, and enter Usman Khawaja, the Pakistan-born Aussie Test cricketer who walks out to practice before the first Test match against Pakistan with ‘All lives are equal’ scribbled on his shoes on one side and ‘freedom is a human right’ on the other. Nothing can be wrong about this, can it?
A video later posted by Khawaja hinted otherwise. The International Cricket Council (ICC) deemed this expression a violation of their guidelines and requested the Test opener not to wear the same shoes during the Test match. Despite the intention to advocate for equality and human rights, the ICC emphasized the need to adhere to a neutral stance on political or social issues during official matches.
So, do all lives not matter according to ICC, or what?
They definitely do at least according to the reputation the body has built. Additionally, statements like ‘all lives matter’ and ‘freedom is a human right’ are inherently true and need no rallies or protests to underscore their significance. To any rational mind, acknowledging that all lives matter is self-evident. The primary concern, however, lies in the context surrounding these statements.
Cricket governing body finds these lines on Usman Khawaja’s shoes to be his expression of his support for the plight of people in Gaza, who have been enduring the worst humanitarian crisis at the hands of Israel since 7th October. Like many other cricketers, Khawaja has spoken publicly about it several times. But he is the first player to bring the matter to the field. Per the ICC rule book, this practice is termed as non-compliance with the policies of the council.
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Usman Khawaja’s protest promise in the video
Khawaja, despite accepting ICC’s request, stays adamant that the lines in question are nowhere near political. Bewildered at ICC’s request, the 37-year-old cricketer expressed his failure to fathom how can statements as benign as the ones he wrote on his shoes be construed as taking sides or bringing politics into the game. What adds fuel to the fire is that players have previously expressed their concerns and support for various instances of human rights abuses, without drawing the displeasure of the cricket council. The strongest one in the memory is taking the knee of cricketers and observing a minute’s silence for Black lives.
The Saga continues
Staying true to his promise, the Aussie batter wore a black armband to all four days of the first Test match against Pakistan. Little did he know that donning this band would also land him in hot waters. The international cricket body has raised objections and is now considering imposing a fine on Khawaja. The ICC spokesperson referred to Usman Khawaja’s protest as being for ‘personal reasons,’ emphasizing that Khawaja failed to seek prior permission from either the ICC or Cricket Australia.
Though the southpaw is yet to comment on this new update by the International Cricket Council, this protest campaign has taken an unexpected turn for him. With the Boxing Day Test looming on the horizon, it remains uncertain how he plans to sustain this silent rebellion.
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