Usman Khwaja set to break Steve Waugh's unique record for Australia

Ahead of the much-awaited Border Gavaskar trophy, Usman Khwaja, the top-order batting pillar in the Aussie circuit, will turn 38, becoming the oldest test cricketer in Australia.

Earlier, former Australian captain Steve Waugh was the oldest cricketer for Australia. Apart from Tugga, the legendary Allan Border himself played Test after celebrating his 38th birthday.

The Border-Gavaskar Trophy will start this November. India will tour Australia for the revised version of the series, with 5 tests to play.

India has been the winner since the 2016-17 version that was played in India. Australia could not win the prestigious trophy back from India despite hosting India twice in the last seven years.

Read about Usman Khawaja's journey as a test cricketer for Australia

Usman Khwaja eased under Cummins

Khwaja will turn 38 this December. The reigning ICC Test Cricketer of the Year had once decided to draw the ending line to his career after the 2019/20 summer.

However, the support of captain Pat Cummins and the "chilled, relaxed environment” infused by national coach Andrew McDonald have stopped him from taking such drastic steps.

The team management has ensured a personalized training schedule for Khawaja. Keeping in mind that a 24-year-old and a 38 year old need different types of training disciplines, Khwaja has all the required facilities. 

A turn-around for Tugga

Tugga was dropped from the 2019-20 series. Later, the left-hander got a recall during the 2021/22 Ashes, and became the leading run-scorer, scoring 2564 runs at 53.41 with seven hundred.

Khawaja has scored 544 Test runs against India at 34.00, while that figure drops to 28.28 on home soil.

However, he had a remarkable test performance during the 2018 Perth Test against India, where he top-scored in the second innings with a gritty 72 in difficult conditions.

Usman Khawaja’s home Test batting average

• 74.40 vs New Zealand
• 58.11 vs South Africa
• 57.44 vs the West Indies
• 56.00 vs Sri Lanka
• 53.83 vs England
• 48.70 vs Pakistan
• 28.28 vs India

Khwaja is never a player who gets enough "rest." He utilizes his time playing golf and spending quality time with his family.

He represented the Vancouver Knights in the Global T20 Canada but otherwise didn’t play any competitive cricket over the winter.

Read Also: Rohit Sharma in 2024: Hitman becomes the oldest captain to score 1000 runs in a calendar year

Most Test runs for Australia after 35th birthday

1. 2564: Usman Khawaja
2. 2554: Steve Waugh
3. 2473: Allan Border
4. 2323: Michael Hussey
5. 1996: Chris Rogers