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Cricketer Khawaja takes another dig at ICC for double standards over Gaza

After being refused permission to display a dove of peace on his bat, Australian cricketer Usman Khawaja posts a video on Instagram showing pictures of other international players with religious symbols and messages on their bats.

AFP

Australia's Usman Khawaja plays a shot on the first day of the second cricket Test match between Australia and Pakistan at the Melbourne Cricket Ground [MCG] in Melbourne. / Photo: AFP

Australia opener Usman Khawaja has again accused the International Cricket Council [ICC] of double standards after being refused permission to display a dove of peace on his bat during the Boxing Day test against Pakistan.

In a video on Instagram late on the eve of the second test against visiting Pakistan at the Melbourne Cricket Ground [MCG], Khawaja posted pictures of other international players with religious symbols and messages on their bats.

"Merry Christmas everybody, sometimes you just gotta laugh ... #inconsistent #doublestandards," he wrote underneath, with Kanye West's song "Can't Tell Me Nothing" over the video.

The Pakistan-born Khawaja, who has been keen to show his support for the besieged Palestinians in Gaza during Israel's ongoing brutal war, was reprimanded for wearing a black armband in the first test against Pakistan in Perth earlier this month.

He had originally intended to show his support by writing the messages "Freedom is a human right" and "All lives are equal" on his boots in the colours of the Palestinian flag, but that gesture also fell foul of ICC regulations.

Khawaja had worked with Cricket Australia on a new way to show his support by having the dove on his bat accompanied by the message "01: UDHR" in reference to the first article of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

According to The Australian newspaper, the ICC also refused to allow him to display the message.

There was no immediate reply from the ICC.

ICC reprimands Australia cricketer Khawaja over 'pro-Palestine' armband

Double standards

The ICC Code of Conduct forbids players from wearing, displaying or conveying messages through arm bands or other items on clothing or equipment without prior approval, especially for "political, religious or racial" causes.

However, West Indies players were permitted to wear 'Black Lives Matter' logos on their shirts during a test series against England in 2020.

But England's Moeen Ali was banned from wearing wristbands with messages 'Save Gaza' and 'Free Palestine' during a home test against India in 2014.

Australia captain Pat Cummins said on Monday that the team were sympathetic to Khawaja's desire to show his support to the people of Gaza.

"I don't know the ins and outs of the application, but I think it is pretty vanilla, a dove," he told reporters.

"We really support Uzzy [Usman Khawaja]. I think he's standing up for what he believes, and I think he's doing it really respectfully," he said.

"He can hold his head high the way he's gone about it, but there are rules in place, so I believe the ICC has said they're not going to approve that. They make up the rules, and you've got to accept it."

Israel's brutal war and siege in Gaza — now in its 81st day — has left at least 20,674 Palestinians dead, mostly women and children, and wounded 54,536 while thousands are feared buried under debris of bombed homes.