Ricky Ponting Feels It Will Be Difficult for Usman Khawaja to Make Return to Australian Team After Being Omitted From 2020-21 Contract List
The new list for the upcoming year was announced last month and featured a number of limited-overs specialists with the upcoming T20 World Cup in mind. Khawaja has so far played only nine T20Is, the last of which was in September 2016.
Melbourne, May 18: Former Australia captain Ricky Ponting believes it will be difficult for batsman Usman Khawaja to make a return into the national team after being omitted from Cricket Australia's central contract list for 2020-21.
Ponting feels Khawaja's inconsistency is a big problem and so far in his career, the southpaw has only shown glimpses of the brilliance which he is capable of.
"I honestly think now he's going to find it difficult (to get back into the Australian team) and I feel for him," Ponting told ABC Grandstand as per ESPNCricinfo. ‘Can’t Forget Ricky Ponting Sledging Me in 2005 Ashes Test at Edgbaston’, Says Andrew Flintoff.
"I love Usman Khawaja, I got really close to him over the last 10 years since he made his debut and I talk to him quite regularly.
"I've always felt he's a very good player and we probably never saw the absolute best of him at international cricket. We saw glimpses of it, and dribs and drabs, but not the consistently good player I thought he could have been for Australia."
Earlier, former Australia captain Michael Clarke had questioned CA's decision to exclude Khawaja from its list of centrally contracted players.
The new list for the upcoming year was announced last month and featured a number of limited-overs specialists with the upcoming T20 World Cup in mind. Khawaja has so far played only nine T20Is, the last of which was in September 2016.
"I find it very hard to believe that someone with the talent and the runs behind him over 10 years isn't in Australia's top 20 players," Clarke said on Big Sports Breakfast.
(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on May 18, 2020 02:49 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).