Lehmann’s fresh spin on Usman

AUSTRALIAN coach Darren Lehmann is confident Usman Khawaja’s demons against spin bowling won’t continue to haunt him this Ashes summer.

Khawaja played just one of six Test matches on the subcontinent this year because of concerns over his ability to handle turn.

However, his problems away appeared to follow him back home for the first Test at the Gabba, when he missed a straight one to England spinner Moeen Ali.

Provided Ali isn’t ruled out of Adelaide with the finger injury he suffered in Brisbane, it’s certain England’s tactic all series will be to target Khawaja with spin every single time he walks to the crease.

But returning to the scene of the greatest century of his Test career last year against South Africa, Khawaja has the full support of coach Lehmann that the first-up lbw to Ali was merely a blip on the radar.

Khawaja dominated the early rounds of the Sheffield Shield and Lehmann said that included strong performances against Test spinner Nathan Lyon and Victorian leggie Fawad Ahmed.

“Stats will say yes (his work against spin is a concern), but for us he played Lyon really well in the Shield game (at Allan Border Field),” said Lehmann.