Australia opening batter Usman Khawaja capped his second comeback as a Test opener by claiming the inaugural Shane Warne Award as the men’s Test player of the year. Named in honour of the legendary leg-spinner Shane Warne, who passed away last March, Khawaja polled 22 votes to win ahead of Marnus Labuschagne (20) and Steve Smith (16). “Khawaja was a heavy favourite for the award after a prolific 12 months that saw him score 1,020 runs in the voting period, at an average of 78.46. The Allan Border Medal’s overall winner is decided primarily by test votes, however Khawaja hasn’t represented Australia in either limited-overs format in the previous 12 months,” Australia Cricket said in an official statement. Travis Head’s injury during the Ashes series led to Khawaja entering the Australian team, and Khawaja jokingly praised Head “for giving him a game” Khawaja has been Australia’s top run-scorer in the five-day format since rejoining the Test team in January of last year, with 1020 runs at 78.46 during the voting period. In the Test against South Africa at the Sydney Cricket Ground (SCG), he finished the voting session with an undefeated 195; this was his third straight Test century there. Along with his Australian teammates Pat Cummins, Nathan Lyon, and Marnus Labuschagne, Khawaja was last week selected for the ICC Test Team of the Year. Meanwhile, Veteran opener David Warner was named Men’s ODI Player of the Year. Warner beat his teammate Steve Smith to win the Men’s ODI Player of the Year award, who were locked on 25 votes for this tightlycontested award, with that pair one vote ahead of Travis Head. Following votes from players, umpires, and media from the 17 matches Australia played during the voting period, the award was the first major honour presented at the 2023 Australian Cricket Awards.
