Mickey Arthur is a very good guy: Usman Khawaja
Dec 13, 2016 at 3:41 PM
Australian batsman Usman Khawaja has insisted that he has moved on from the infamous ‘homework-gate’ that was the focal point of Mickey Arthur’s turbulent 18 months stint with the Australian team.
The former coach is back in Australia, this time with Pakistan for a three-match Test series followed by a limited-overs series. But more than the game, Arthur’s rocky relationship with the Australian players have grabbed the spotlight in the build-up to the series. However, Khawaja, who was one of the four players who was sent home midway through the India series in 2013 after failing to comply with the coach’s instruction, said that the former South Africa coach is a ‘good guy’ before adding that the homework gate did not affect him.
Speaking ahead of the first Test that begins on December 15, the left-handed batsman said: “It’s water under the bridge. It was so long ago.I’m not spiteful. Mickey is a very good guy. He was very nice, every time … he was very helpful. I don’t hold on.”
“It was tough at the time … it (homework-gate) didn’t really affect me too much,” he added.
The Pakistan-born batsman will play his first Test against the country of his birth. Admitting that he is more Australian than a Pakistani, the 29-year old said that Pakistan will always be a big part of his life.
“My parents are Australian but they’re also very Pakistani,” Khawaja said. “If I broke it down, the way I act and what I do is very Australian, but there’s always parts of me — when I talk to my parents I try to speak Urdu with them here and there.
“It’s not as good as them but they understand what’s going on so it is a big part of my life when I’m with my parents and around my parents,” he added.