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'I genuinely thought I was going to die' - Usman Khawaja reveals secret battle with rheumatoid arthritis during career

Former Australian cricketer Usman Khawaja has shared that he lived with a severe autoimmune condition called rheumatoid arthritis throughout his entire professional career, having received the diagnosis at just 22 years old while playing for New South Wales. The serious illness left him unable to walk short distances and caused immense fear during his early twenties, prompting him to keep the struggle completely hidden from his teammates to avoid any perceived weakness or preferential treatment.

He managed to return to the sport roughly half a year later thanks to regular medication injections, going on to represent his country in 88 Test matches, accumulate 6,229 runs with 16 centuries, and make history as Australia's first Pakistani-born and Muslim Test cricketer.

Even close peers such as David Warner and Michael Hussey remained entirely unaware of the health battle during their playing days together. Khawaja only disclosed the truth after stepping away from international competition following the Ashes series conclusion in January, and he has now documented the experience in his forthcoming autobiography titled Sabr to encourage others facing similar health challenges.

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