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Usman Khawaja has come out of Perth with almost no runs, a bad back, and an Instagram post that has shoved him into the middle of Australia’s latest Ashes argument. In a match where Travis Head’s blistering century at the top of the order set up an eight-wicket win, it is Khawaja’s gold-course photo and a seven-word caption that have become the more polarising talking point.
For a 38-year-old opener already under scrutiny, the combination of a low-impact Test, visible discomfort, and a playful social media post has lit up the debate around professionalism, preparation, and his future at the top of the order.
Why the Golf-course?
In the lead-up to the first Ashes Test, Usman Khawaja is understood to have played golf on three consecutive days in Perth, including skipping an optional training session to take part in a round linked to a pro-am appearance. By the time the series began, he was battling back spasms serious enough that he could not fulfill his primary role at the top of the order, instead sliding into no.4 in the first innings and not batting at all in the successful fourth-innings chase of 205.
On its own, that preparation-versus-injury sequence was always going to raise eyebrows. The Instagram post turned raised eyebrows into open criticism. Khawaja posted a carousel of images from the week – including a serene shot of a lakeside fairway – wrapped in the caption: “What a week! It had it all.”
Current and former teammates joined in the comments with a knowing wink. Pat Cummins dropped a golf-swing emoji. David Warner chimed in to a long “Foreeeeee”, the classing warning shout on a tee box. Former seamer Trent Copeland replied with laughing emojis. From inside the bubble, it read as harmless banter about a shared obsession.
Outside that circle, the reaction has been far sharper. Mitchell Johnson has already labeled the saga a “self-inflicted back spasm fiasco,” arguing that at Khawaja’s age and in an Ashes series, three straight days on the course before a Test simply does not reflect a lack of professionalism.
All of this lands as the selectors weigh up their options for the second Test. Head’s explosive 123 as a stand-in opener has created a compelling alternative at the top, and younger contenders are pushing from below. In that context, Khawaja’s Instagram line – “What a week! It had it all” – now reads less like a throwaway caption and more like a pivot point. The week may yet be remembered not for its golf jokes, but as the moment his grip on the baggy green’s opening slot began to slip.
