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Usman Khawaja became the 17th Australian and the 60th player overall to score a century in each innings of a Test match. The right-hander achieved this feat with an unbeaten 101 in Australia’s second innings on Day 4 of the fourth Ashes Test against England at Sydney Cricket Ground on Saturday.
The 35-year-old also made 137 (260b, 13x4) in Australia’s first innings. Playing his first Test since 2019, Khawaja missed 14 Tests in succession before the ongoing Sydney Test, the most consecutive Tests missed by a player before scoring twin centuries in a Test.
The previous record was nine Tests for Australian Steven Smith (in 2019), when was serving a ban, followed by Indian Rohit Sharma (three in 2019) and Zimbabwean Andy Flower (two in 2001). Two batters before Usman Khawaja scored centuries in both innings of a Test match at the Sydney Cricket Ground.
Doug Walters scored 242 and 103 against West Indies in 1969 at this venue, while Ricky Ponting scored two centuries against South Africa in 2006, which was also his 100th Test match. Usman Khawaja’s second century in the Sydney Tests was his 10th in 79 innings of 45 Test matches, all since the start of 2015.
Khawaja is one of 10 players to score ten or more Test centuries in this period, that too after missing 30 of the 66 Test matches Australia have played in this period. Usman Khawaja also became the only ninth batter to score hundreds in both innings of an Ashes Test.
The last to achieve the feat was his teammate Steve Smith. Smith scored two 140-plus scores in Birmingham in 2019.
At 35 years and 21 days, Usman Khawaja is the second oldest player to score two centuries for Australia in a Test match. Donald Bradman was 39 years and 129 days old when he scored 132 and 127 not out against India at Melbourne in January 1948. Khawaja is also the oldest of the nine players to score centuries in both innings of an Ashes Test.
** Usman Khawaja’s 179-run partnership with Cameron Green is the second-highest fifth-wicket stand in the Ashes after the fall of the first four wickets for less than 100 runs. Matthew Elliott and Ponting added 268 after Australia were four wickets down for 50 runs at Leeds in 1997.
The 179 runs scored by the Usman Khawaja-Cameron Green pair is also the highest for any wicket in the ongoing Ashes series.
** Steve Smith became the fourth Australian batter to complete 3000 runs against England. He took 54 innings to reach this landmark, the second-quickest in terms of innings. Don Bradman was the fastest to the milestone, needing only 38 innings.
Steven Smith is also one of the eight players with 3000-plus Test runs against a single opponent, and the fifth to achieve it against England.
Two Centuries In A Test Match For Australia Against England:
Scores-Player-Venue-Season
136 & 130-Warren Bardsley-The Oval-1909
122 & 124*-Arthur Morris-Adelaide-1946-47
108 & 116-Steve Waugh-Manchester-1997
197 & 103-Matthew Hayden-Brisbane-2002-03
144 & 142-Steve Smith-Birmingham-2019
137 & 101*-Usman Khawaja-Sydney-2021-22
