'I Find it a Bit Unfair That…': Usman Khawaja’s Barefoot Interview After His Pro-Palestine Shoes Controversy | WATCH – News18

Following the controversy stirred by the slogans written on Usman Khawaja’s footwear, the Australia batter took the field in the first Test against Pakistan on Thursday with a different pair of shoes. As stated by captain Pat Cummins, Khawaja didn’t want to escalate the issue and thus, decided not to wear the spikes with ‘Freedom is a human right’ and ‘All lives are equal’ written on it.

But what drew everyone’s attention was his interview with 7Cricket before the start of the first day’s play in Perth. During the interaction with Alison Mitchell, Khawaja was seen barefooted and the picture has gone viral on social media.

Speaking with broadcaster Alison Mitchell, Khawaja said he would abide by the ICC laws but also stood by the cause he raised his voice for.

“I’m a grown man, I can do anything I want, but the ICC will just keep coming down and giving me fines, and at some point, it will detract from the game. I stand by what I said. I’ll stand by it forever. But, I also need to go out there and really concentrate on what I’m doing,” Khawaja said.

The opening batter further mentioned that he would challenge the ICC’s decision of not allowing them to wear shoes with slogans written on them. He called the move ‘unfair’ citing that several instances had happened in the past but the governing body didn’t do anything about that.

“No, I’ll try to do it as soon as possible, whenever that’s possible. I think there have already been precedents set in the past that ICC have allowed. Precedents said that players have done stuff where ICC hasn’t done anything in the past. So I find it a bit unfair that they have come down on me at this point in time where there have definitely been precedents in the past of similar things,” Khawaja said.

Earlier on Wednesday, Khawaja posted a video on Instagram, stating that he may have agreed to ICC’s regulations about the sporting gear to be donned during a game but is determined to challenge it as the cricketer believes that the slogans written by him on his shoes are not political or taking anyone’s side.

“I’ve noticed what I’ve written on my shoes has caused a little bit of a stir. I won’t say much. I don’t need to. But what I do want is for everyone who did get offended, somehow, is to ask yourself these questions. Is freedom not for everyone? Are all lives not equal?

“To me personally, it doesn’t matter what race, religion, or culture you are. Let’s be honest about it.  If me saying all lives are equal has resulted in people being offended to the point where they’re calling me up and telling me off, well isn’t that the bigger problem? These people obviously don’t believe in what I’ve written, and it’s not just a handful of people. You’d be shocked about how many feel this way,” he added.

The 36-year-old said whatever he written on his shoes wasn’t political nether he is taking any side as he believes all lives are equal.

“What I’ve written on my shoes isn’t political. I’m not taking sides. Human life to me is equal. One Jewish life is equal to one Muslim life is equal to a Hindu life and so on.

“I’m just speaking up for those who don’t have a voice. This is close to my heart. When I see thousands of innocent children dying without any repercussions or remorse, I imagine my two girls.  What if this was them? No one chooses where they’re born. And then I see the world turn their backs on them. My heart can’t take it,” Khawaja further said.