Sunday saw the Apex cricket council reject Usman Khawaja’s most recent attempt to draw attention to the Gaza issue by Australia’s opening batsman. Khawaja, prior to Australia’s training session on Sunday at the MCG ahead of the Boxing Day match against Pakistan, asked via an application to have an image of a dove and an olive branch shown on his bat and shoes.
Prior to putting the logo on his bat along with shoes at the MCG, Khawaja reportedly verified with Cricket Australia as well as the Australian Cricketers’ Association. He was given the go-ahead, but his application to the Apex cricket council to do the exact same thing during the second match of the series against Pakistan, which starts on Tuesday, was rejected, according to a report in ESPNCricinfo.
The apex cricket council’s spokesperson spoke on their website. He said, “The apex cricket council, after giving due consideration to Usman Khawaja’s request for a personal message logo on his bat for the remainder of the Test series against Pakistan, did not approve the application. Personal messages of this nature are not allowed as per Clause F of the Clothing and Equipment Regulations, which can be found on the Playing Conditions page.”
He added, “The Apex cricket council is supportive of players using their platforms outside of the playing arena to promote human rights, peace and equality and would encourage him to continue to use alternative platforms.”
“They show their hypocrisy and lack of moral standing” : Michael Holding
Michael Holding, a legendary broadcaster and former West Indies cricket player, lost it earlier in the day when he criticised the ICC for their “hypocrisy and lack of moral standing” during the Khawaja case.
Michael Holder said, “I have been following the Khawaja fiasco and I cannot say I’m surprised by the apex cricket council stance. If it had been most other organisations that showed some semblance of consistency with their attitude and behaviour on issues I could claim surprise, but not them. Once again, they show their hypocrisy and lack of moral standing as an organisation.”
