Aussie cricketer wears shoes marked with daughters’ names after ban on pro-Gaza message

By AFP 26 December 2023, 9:51 am

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Australia's batsman Usman Khawaja has the names of his children written on his boots, rather than a message about Gaza, on the first day of the second cricket Test match between Australia and Pakistan at the Melbourne Cricket Ground in Melbourne on December 26, 2023. (William WEST / AFP)

Australian cricketer Usman Khawaja wore shoes marked with his daughters’ names as he batted against Pakistan on Tuesday, after being banned from wearing references to the ongoing war in Gaza between Israel and Hamas.

Khawaja, who was out for 42, was denied permission by the International Cricket Council (ICC) to have a sticker showing a black dove holding an olive branch on his bat and shoes during the match.

Instead, a close-up photo of his shoes reveals the names of his daughters Aisha and Ayla taped to the side of his footwear during the opening day of the second Test in Melbourne.