Khawaja says he’s learnt from past mistakes
CRICKET: Usman Khawaja says he will not be using his latest Test snubbing as motivation to kick-start his Australian career.
The Queensland captain was dropped after last month’s first Test in Bangladesh, which Australia lost.
He also famously said last year that he was made one of the scapegoats for the series defeat in Sri Lanka, and he was also dropped after failures in India earlier this year.
Khawaja is expected to make his return to the squad for the first Ashes Test in Brisbane in November.
But he said that while being dropped hurt, he was not about to whinge about it again.
“That stuff doesn’t motivate me and it’s not really (a chip on my shoulder),” he said.
“All that stuff is out of my control and I know from past experiences the more you harp on it the worse it gets.
“It’s definitely given me plenty of experience of being dropped: in for one game in Bangladesh and a couple in Sri Lanka then going out again; it’s not ideal, never easy and never fun.
“The games I have missed out on have been the highest run-scoring games, which has been disappointing sitting on the sidelines, but that’s just how it is.”
Khawaja will be back in action next Friday when the Bulls begin their domestic one-day campaign with a game against the CA XI.
He has already hit top form in Brisbane club cricket, scoring 162 and 79 for Valley.
“I felt pretty good on the weekend and I’ve never been the kind of guy that needs to hit a lot of balls,” he said.
“I feel like I can go in and out of cricket, keep things pretty simple and not feel like I’m ever out of touch or form whether I’m scoring runs or not.”
Khawaja will skipper the Queensland side but the 24-year-old said he wasn’t looking to make a point to selectors.
“I’m not going out there in the one-day cup to strengthen my chances for Test cricket or anything else,” Khawaja said.
“My focus is in on trying to win this tournament.”