The established Australian opener reacted to the hostile nature of English crowds since the controversial Jonny Bairstow stumping in the Ashes 2023.
Usman Khawaja, the in-form Australian opener, condemned English fans who have been present at the stadiums throughout the Ashes 2023, stating they have behaved in a “rough” and too “disappointing” manner towards the visiting side.
For the first three Tests, Khawaja and the other Australian players have faced the cruellest teasing and mockery within the grounds at Edgbaston, Lord’s, and Headingley. Since the contentious Jonny Bairstow stumping at Lord’s, the boos and abuse have only grown louder.
The home crowds have banded together and treated the Australian team with disgust on the field to back the England camp’s convenient inclination to play a legal stumping and the narrative surrounding it along the lines of “spirit of cricket.”
Even the supposedly well-behaved MCC members crossed the line over the Bairstow dismissal by going after the Australian players in the esteemed long room with boos and abuse at Lord’s during the lunch break on Day 5.
One of the players subjected to the jeering in the long room was Usman Khawaja, who was seen to have reacted by pointing his finger at one of those spectators and responding with a mouthful in a footage that went viral on social media.
It took the help of a security guard, who intervened on time, to ensure Khawaja and teammate Steve Smith were taken off safely without the matter further escalating or potentially resulting in a physical fight.
Carey has only suffered worse as a result of the uproar, with even the English media participating in the narrative and publishing a story in which he was falsely accused of carrying a haircut bill that was unpaid. The Leeds fans dubbed the wicketkeeper a cheat and abused him each time he was in the middle of the play.
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“I mean, they [English crowds] are rough,” Khawaja told Telegraph. “But if you talk about it to England guys, they say we are equally as rough [when they go to Australia]. I don’t agree with it either way. I don’t think it’s the right thing to do. Personally if I am coming to the cricket and watching the cricket, I wouldn’t want my kids to be around that. If I saw that I would 100 per cent make a complaint or just leave.”
“I think some of the stuff can be pretty poor. Over at Edgbaston they were calling Travis Head a c—, you know what I mean? I’m like I can’t believe you can actually say that in a public domain anywhere. It can be a little disappointing at times, and I think we can [also] take it too far in Australia.
