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MELBOURNE (Reuters) – Australia’s Usman Khawaja ranks England because the hardest place for high order batsmen and can head to the Ashes with low expectations after struggling on earlier excursions.
Khawaja has a batting common of 19.66 from six checks in England, lower than half his profession common of 47.81, and was dropped after three matches of the 2019 Ashes, which Australia drew 2-2 to retain the urn.
“England is, for my part, the hardest place on the planet to bat for a high three batsman, plain and easy,” Khawaja informed Australian media.
“New ball is hard work, however then you definitely get some (climate) circumstances, and it’s kind of of luck concerned in it, too.
“If I’ve discovered something, it is work arduous, practice arduous, (and) if you are going to England, go together with low expectations … work on each recreation one after the other, as a result of you’re going to fail as a batsman.
“However if you do rating, you attempt to money in as a lot as you’ll be able to.”
Khawaja was hardly alone in struggling for runs on the high of the order in 2019, with group mate David Warner averaging 9.50, the worst ever common by an opener to play 10 innings in a sequence.
Dropped after the Leeds check in 2019, Khawaja was not recalled till the fourth check of the final Ashes in Australia in 2021-22, which the hosts gained 4-0.
The trendy lefthander scored twin centuries batting at quantity 5 in that Sydney match and has since been a fixture in Australia’s check setup.
“I really feel like I am a greater participant than I used to be 10 years in the past,” stated the 36-year-old.
“However … there is not any ensures – (James) Anderson, (Stuart) Broad, they’re unbelievable bowlers, they’re powerful work at the beginning.”
(Reporting by Ian Ransom in Melbourne; Modifying by …)