Australia’s Usman Khawaja to show solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza with messages on shoes | Cricket News

Australian cricketer Usman Khawaja plans to show solidarity with Palestinians sporting shoes with slogans on them during the Test match against Pakan cricket team at Perth.
On Tuesday, as the Australian cricket team held a training session ahead of the first Test, photographs emerged of Khawaja’s shoes bearing the messages: “Freedom is a human right” and “All lives are equal”. Israeli forces have attacked Gaza in retaliation ever since Hamas attacked Israel on October 7.
The cricketer then confirmed to Sydney Morning Herald that he was planning on wearing the shoes on Day 1 of the first Test in Perth. The two teams will play the second Test in Melbourne before the last match in Sydney.
The batter has shared a couple of posts on social media about the Israel-Palestine conflict, making his views known.
It remains to be seen if the slogan on his shoes fall afoul of the International Cricket Committee’s regulations on political messaging during matches.
The series will be Australia’s first at home after they defeated India in the final to claim their sixth World Cup title last month.
At the World Cup, the final between India and Australia was interrupted a pro-Palestine supported who had jumped over the fences and made a run towards Virat Kohli.
The series will also see David Warner playing his last Test matches for Australia while Pakan will play under new captain Shan Masood as they try and win their first-ever series Down Under since 1995.
Masood took over the reins in the longest format of the sport after Babar Azam stepped down as captain from all-formats of the game due to Pakan’s asmal performance at the recently-concluded Cricket World Cup in India.