Usman Khawaja was filled with emotions after he scored his 14th Test hundred in the fourth and final Test against Rohit Sharma’s India at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad.
The Islamabad-born Khawaja became only the first Australian opener to score a century on Indian soil since Shane Watson scored one back in 2010.
The left-handed Khawaja recalled his previous tours of India when he had to sit out and mostly carry drinks.
“It was a lot of emotion in that. I have been to India on two tours before this, and carried the drinks in eight Test matches,” Khawaja was quoted as saying after the opening day’s play.
Khawaja looked determined after the Aussies opted to bat first in decent batting conditions. He stayed unbeaten on 104 runs off 251 balls with the help of 15 fours. The southpaw said that he didn’t pay heed to his ego and rather, put his head down to score a hundred.
“It was such a nice wicket; I just didn’t want to give my wicket away. It was a mental battle more than anything. You need to put your ego away. I’ve got no superstitions… just run through, stretch,” he added.
On the back of Khawaja’s knock, Australia ended Day 1 of the final Test with their score at 255 for the loss of four wickets. He and Cameron Green have put on 85 runs for the fourth wicket in 19.2 overs.
