Cricket Australia chief Todd Greenberg said he has no issue with opening batter Usman Khawaja playing golf the day before the first Test.
Khawaja was one of the biggest talking points from a chaotic first day in Perth that saw 19 wickets fall.
The veteran was not allowed to open the batting after spending too long off the field during England’s first innings as he struggled with back spasms.
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It meant Marnus Labuschagne had to open alongside debutant Jake Weatherald, and Steve Smith was forced to come in at No.3.
Weatherald fell for a second-ball duck, Labuschagne struggled on the way to nine off 41 balls while Smith copped a series of blows on the way to 17.
Usman Khawaja was not allowed to open the batting. Credit: Getty
Khawaja made just two batting at No.4, meaning he has now failed to post a half-century in his past 11 Test innings.
It later emerged that Khawaja played 18 holes of golf on Thursday.
Many fans questioned the decision to play golf on Test eve, with even 7AFL commentator Kane Cornes making his thoughts known.
“Elite professionalism, a nearly 39-year-old warming up for a fierce Test with 18 holes of golf. Who would’ve predicted that outcome?” he tweeted.
But Greenberg said it’s pretty common for cricketers to play golf a day out from a Test match. He even noted that Mitchell Starc also played and it didn’t affect his performance.
“It’s held him in good stead over the last couple of years,” Greenberg said on SEN.
“It’s not uncommon for a lot of them to play golf day prior. A lot of people talk about cricket being played between the ears, and so getting some time away from being in your hotel or training, I think is really important.
“I noticed Mitch Starc played golf with him, so it certainly didn’t impact his performance. Did that correlate to any of the issues?
“I personally don’t think so. I think 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.”
Starc, who took an amazing seven wickets on Day 1, also defended his teammate.
“It’s interesting. There’s a lot of opinions from people that aren’t in the change room. So we’ll let the opinions be the opinions, we know what’s going on in the change room,” Starc told SEN on Saturday
“It was unfortunate that that was the case. He had a back spasm. There’s not much you can do about that.
“So, yeah, look, it is what it is. That’s the innings done. Now he’s assessed that overnight, and I think I’ve seen him this morning, he sounds like he’s moving OK.”
– With AAP
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