Usman Khawaja has revealed his part in directly lobbying the International Cricket Council (ICC) to soften over-rate penalties midway through the Ashes, a move Australia hope will ensure their Word Test Championship (WTC) title defence is not put in jeopardy.
The ICC last week announced changes to over-rate sanctions in Tests after heavy penalties were handed down following the WTC final between Australia and India, and then the ensuing first Ashes Test.
In addition to players being fined 40 per cent of their match fees after both Australia and England were found to be two overs behind at Edgbaston, the two teams were then also docked two WTC points each.
Even harsher penalties looked set to be handed down following the Lord’s Test, putting a repeat of Australia’s agonising absence from the 2021 WTC final due to an over-rate violation during the 2020 Boxing Day Test back on the…