'Genuinely thought i was going to die': Usman Khawaja opens up on career-long health issue

Usman Khawaja has opened up about his battle with rheumatoid arthritis, revealing that he once feared for his life after struggling to walk just 10 metres to the bathroom. The former Australia batter, who represented his country in 88 Tests, was diagnosed with the condition at the age of 22. The 39-year-old kept his diagnosis private and even his close friends in the Australian team unaware of his condition. Only the team’s medical staff and coaches knew about his health issues.

“I genuinely thought I was going to die. I went from this athlete who was playing professional cricket to not being able to walk 10 metres to the bathroom,” Khawaja told ABC Sport.

The former opener credited injections for helping him continue his cricket career, calling them a “god-send”.

“Without that drug, I would never have played cricket ever again or even lived a normal life again,” Khawaja said.

He also hopes his journey will motivate others living with the condition to follow their dreams and achieve their goals.

“If a person can play at the top level … as a professional cricketer with rheumatoid arthritis, then I think a lot of other people can achieve a lot, too,” he added.

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Meanwhile, Khawaja has also questioned why Sheffield Shield performances are sometimes undervalued, pointing out that several players have records similar to those of Marnus Labuschagne, who is currently struggling for runs and has gone 47 Test innings without scoring a century.

Khawaja believes domestic performances should receive greater consideration when selectors assess players for the Australian team.

“We’ve got plenty of players in Sheffield Shield cricket who are very good players, who are pretty much averaging and doing the same as Marnus in that respect,” Khawaja said.

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He also mentioned young batter Jack Clayton, whom he played alongside, as an example of a player whose performances have not received enough attention.

“Jack Clayton, who is a young guy that I played with. He’s scored six centuries averaging 38 and no one talks about him.”

Khawaja added that if Labuschagne’s Sheffield Shield record is considered good enough to earn him a place in the Australian team, than other players with similar records should also get an opportunity.

“So the narrative of when people devalue Shield cricket, it frustrates me because I’m like, OK, if Marnus is good enough to play for Australia with that Sheffield Shield record, why can’t any of these guys play?” he added.