Usman Khawaja of Australia was the highest run-getter in Ashes 2023 and Zak Crawley of England was second highest run-getter in Ashes 2023. They both are openers for their respective teams. In this article, we will see a very interesting and contrasting comparison of mindsets between the two openers.
Usman Khawaja and Zak Crawley both played exceptionally well for their teams but there is a very interesting thing that separates the two of them which is their mindset and approach to test format. Khawaja was very steady and slow in his method of run-making. He shows a perfect example of a classic test batsman.
Zak Crawley on the other hand demonstrates the modern-day bazball approach of the England team in test format. He has played very aggressively throughout the series with a very high strike rate.
- Runs – in terms of runs Khawaja is ahead of Crawley. He made 496 runs whereas Crawley made 480 runs in Ashes 2023.
- Balls faced – now this is very interesting because Khawaja’s 496 runs came after playing 1263 deliveries and on the other hand Crawley made 480 runs after facing only 541 deliveries.
- Strike rate – Crawley made strike rate an important stat to look out for even in tests. He made runs with a strike rate of 88.72 while Khawaja’s strike rate in Ashes 2023 was 39.27.
- Average – Crawley averages 53.33 while Usman Khawaja’s average in Ashes 2023 was 49.60.
