Usman Khawaja slams the Australian dressing room leaks, stands up in support of Justin Langer
Australian batter Usman Khawaja has slammed the leak in the national side's dressing room. He thinks that some player or his manager is talking to the media about the things that are going on inside the dressing room.
There have been several reports and discussions in the media during the last few days about an alleged rift between head coach Justin Langer and the players.
Speaking on his YouTube channel, Khawaja stated that he was certain about a leak within the Australian team.
"Things are still coming out in the media. Either someone is going out to the media and telling exactly their point of view about what’s going on. Or they are telling their managers and the managers are telling the media. There is a leak somewhere."
However, he added that it is pointless to try and figure out who the perpetrator is. Usman Khawaja recalled similar incidents happening during his time with the side as well.
"There is no point trying to figure it out because this has been going on in cricket since I have been playing and long, long before."
"It is pretty harsh to judge him on the last two series" – Usman Khawaja stands up for Justin Langer
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The controversy erupted after Australia's disastrous tours of the West Indies and Bangladesh. The Aussies encountered humiliating series defeats on both tours.
Usman Khawaja pointed out that it was harsh to judge Langer’s performance as a coach solely based on these tours, especially with the absence of some senior players.
"Unfortunately, he was in a pretty bad Bangladesh and West Indian tour which I think wasn’t entirely his fault since the majority of the team wasn’t even there. I think it is pretty harsh to judge him on the last two series."
The southpaw urged the players to take ownership and start performing better.
"It’s not always 100% the coach’s fault. The guys aren’t performing. The players have to take ownership at some stage. Guys have to perform better. At the end of the day, it’s not just one person."
The senior players in the squad - Steve Smith, David Warner, Glenn Maxwell, Pat Cummins and Marcus Stoinis - who skipped tours of West Indies and Bangladesh, will now return for the T20 World Cup 2021 Australia squad.