‘Drawing a long bow’: CA boss defends Khawaja’s pre-Ashes golf after back spasms

Cricket Australia chief executive Todd Greenberg has rejected suggestions that Usman Khawaja’s pre-Ashes round of golf at Perth’s exclusive Lake Karrinyup contributed to the back spasms that upended Australia’s batting order in both innings.

Khawaja, Mitchell Starc, Scott Boland, coach Andrew McDonald and selection chair George Bailey were among the members of the home team and support staff who took to the links on Thursday afternoon ahead of the Ashes opener. It was Khawaja’s third round of the week after also playing on Tuesday and Wednesday.

After taking a catch in the first over of the match, Khawaja complained of lower back stiffness during the morning session and spent considerable time off the field getting treatment.

That led to his inability to open alongside Jake Weatherald, before Australia’s batting fell apart to hand back the advantage won by the bowlers earlier in the day.

On day two, Khawaja took a catch before feeling more discomfort after jumping for another possible chance. He looked extremely uncomfortable when he walked slowly off the field and was replaced at the top by Travis Head.

“Unfortunately Uzzy is not moving too well,” Pat Cummins said on Fox Cricket. “His back flared up again in the slips going for a jump above his head so he’s unable to open.

“We were trying to work out whether we shuffle everyone up like the first innings, but Trav ran off and he was keen to give it a crack. He’s done it quite a bit in white-ball cricket so we switched those roles. Hopefully Uzzy can still fill in a role in the middle order at some point.”

Greenberg, who has frequently played golf with Khawaja, said regular time on the course had been a big part of why the 38-year-old and other members of the team had performed well in recent years.

“It’s held him in good stead over the last couple of years,” Greenberg said on SEN radio on Saturday.

“It’s not uncommon for a lot of them to play golf the day prior. A lot of them will talk about cricket being played between the ears, and so getting some time away from your hotel or training is really important.

“I noticed Mitchell Starc played golf with him, so it certainly didn’t affect his performance.

“Did that correlate to any of the issues? I personally don’t think so. I know Usman’s a very seasoned campaigner, he knows his body well, and he knows how to get himself prepared for cricket, and he’s done it over a long period of time. So I think that’s drawing a long bow.”

Greenberg added, however, that Khawaja and other players would have to be accountable for their performances during the series, having been given room to prepare as they think best.

“That’s exactly how Andrew McDonald and the team have functioned over a long period of time, and they’ve been very successful on that,” he said.

“The individual performance inside a team environment, and then ultimately you’re held accountable for your performance. That’s mature and that’s the current approach.”

A 19-wicket day got the Ashes off to a rapid start, with fears the Perth Test might not get far into the third day. Greenberg acknowledged the decision to move the opening Test of the summer from Brisbane to Perth for three years had not been well-liked by the players, as Starc had said.

“I know Mitch was talking about the Gabba, I’m not sure if he’ll want to take that back after his seven-for yesterday,” Greenberg quipped. “But does the Gabba genuinely give us an advantage? I’m not sure. Particularly with the pace attacks of these teams, I’m not sure it is an advantage.

“I understand why the team would want certain things, and the team would understand why I would need certain things. Ultimately, it’s my job then to thread the needle and make a decision that I think is best for Australian cricket, which is what we’ve done here.

“If I was in the job to make friends, this is not the job. You need to make what you think is the best decision for cricket.”

Greenberg admitted, however, that the rush of early wickets ran the risk of affecting CA’s bottom line, in a season when the game’s governors are trying to end a six-year run of balance sheet deficits.

“I’m actually worried about getting to day three before we get to day four – I don’t want to get too far ahead of myself. I’m expecting today the pitch will flatten out a little bit.

“Cricket has made deficits over the last few years out of COVID, and it’s absolutely critical this year that we cash in and make as much as we can to put back into the sport.”

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