Australia’s Usman Khawaja staged a muted protest against the

 war in Gaza on Thursday, wearing a black armband during the 

first Test against Pakistan and taping up messages on his shoes.

The opening batsman had wanted to wear shoes emblazoned with the hand-written slogans “Freedom is a human right” and “All lives are equal” during the match at Perth.

But Pakistan-born Khawaja, who is a Muslim, was told that it flouted International Cricket Council rules on messages that relate to politics, religion or race.

With Cricket Australia saying it expected the players to uphold the rules, Khawaja covered over the slogans with semi-transparent tape leaving the words — in the colour of t

he Palestinian flag — visible only in close-up.

According to local media, Cricket Australia said Khawaja was wearing the armband as a show of solidarity.

Many thousands of Gazans have been killed in the 10-week-old Israeli bombardment, sparked by Hamas raids into Israel on October 7 that killed 1,200 people.

Khawaja, adamant about challenging the ban on his footwear, deems it “a humanitarian appeal.” He reinforced his position just before stepping up to bat in the first Test on Thursday, expressing to Fox Cricket, “I just think that so much has happened in the past that sets a precedent.”

Khawaja highlighted the apparent inconsistency in the ICC guidelines, stating, “Other guys that have religious things on their equipment, under the ICC guidelines that’s not technically allowed, but the ICC never says anything on that.”

Australian captain Pat Cummins voiced his support, stating he was “really proud” of Khawaja and other squad members who spoke up for their beliefs.