Australian veteran Usman Khawaja ended his Test career in emotional scenes at the Sydney Cricket Ground on Thursday afternoon. As he left the field for the final time, his wife Rachel watched from the stands in tears.
Khawaja did not get the dream finish with the bat. He fell for six in his final innings. Still, he walked away a winner as Australia sealed a five wicket victory. The SCG crowd rose to its feet when he came out to bat one last time. He bowed down to the Almighty at the ground. It was a moment to say goodbye to a much loved player.
After warm applause and a pat on the back from captain Steve Smith, Khawaja jogged across the outfield where “Thanks Uzzy” was painted. England players and the umpires formed a guard of honour. Ben Stokes shook his hand as he walked out to chase the final 62 runs.
The home crowd hoped for a fairytale. Khawaja had scored only 17 runs in the first innings. In the second, he got off the mark by flicking Will Jacks for four. But it was not to be. He chopped on to a good length ball from Josh Tongue.
As he walked off, the SCG stood and applauded again. Khawaja waved his bat to all corners of the ground. He knelt on the turf, kissed the outfield, and made his final exit. Rachel watched on, overcome with emotion.
“A little bit of annoyance because I chopped on,” Khawaja told Channel 7 after the match.”
“You don’t always get the fairy tale where I score the runs in the end. And I kind of like that in some respect. When it happened, I got over that after a few seconds.”
“I looked over and saw Rachel. You know, my family was up there, gave them kisses and the love because without her I wouldn’t be here right now.”
“She’s giving me so much support over the years. So much mental, emotional support, so much emotional. She’s the only one I really open up to.”
“It was a thank you and respect. In life I felt like the best way of happiness is content. And the only way to be content is gratitude.”
“I would have loved to score 100 this game. I would love to go out, scored a million runs and won the game. It didn’t happen, but I just wanted to say thank you for everything I’ve been given.”
“Because if you told Young Uzzy you’re going to have 88 Test matches, average over 40 odd and score countless 100s, he would have taken that in a heartbeat.”
Khawaja finishes his Test career with 6229 runs at an average of 43.25. He stands 14th on the list of Australia’s all time Test run scorers.
The SCG was a fitting place to sign off. The ground holds many of his biggest moments. It is also close to where he grew up.
He made his Test debut here in the final match of the 2010–11 Ashes. He scored 37 and 21 and showed the calm style that defined his career. After several drops and recalls, his return came in 2022 when a COVID case opened the door.
Twin centuries at number five sealed his place for the next four years. An unbeaten 195 against South Africa at the SCG followed soon after. Questions were raised early in this final series, but illness and timing gave him one last chance.
Khawaja took it. He left Test cricket with respect, gratitude, and the love of the crowd.
