Foreign Correspondence #5: The PSL, an incident on the Khyber Pass and Ben Roberts-Smith

PL takes a trip around Pakistan

A military helicopter hovers above the Rawalpindi Test in 2022

Don’t know if you listened to our podcast with Tim Paine from the PSL team’s hotel in Karachi. If you haven’t, let me encourage you to lend an ear; Tim brings a great perspective to cricket and touring. He’s always good to catch up with and a generous interviewee.

Over there, the players are pretty much confined to their hotels and can’t get out without an accompanying security detail. It obviously gets trying after a while, but Marnus Labuschagne has set up his espresso machine, and the Australian boys have something of a morning coffee club going (the locals tend to rise in the early afternoon). With Steve Smith, Dave Warner, Adam Zampa, Pete Siddle, Usman Khawaja and another half dozen locals playing in Pakistan, it is quite the scene. Tim says Davey hits breakfast with all the energy of a phone that’s been charging overnight. Marnus is like that 24 hours a day.

Glenn Maxwell, who can also swell a scene, is yet to arrive, but flew out on Friday to join Labuschagne and Riley Meredith at the Hyderabad Kingsmen. The outfit with a name that makes them sound like a ‘60s folk group has lost all four of their matches.

Former openers and their alphabetical daughters

Khawaja is yet to get on the park for the Rawalpindi franchise, which is also 0-4. Teams are only allowed to play four overseas players, and the new father has been overlooked in the early matches with the Pindiz looking to strengthen the bowling, having lost Zaman Khan and Naseem Shah. The first is injured, and the second may be protesting against a record fine imposed on him by the PCB for a social media post.

Usman and Rachel Khawaja with their three girls.

Amira Maya Khawaja, Rachel and Usman’s third daughter, was born in March and joins older sisters Aisha and Ayla. Dave Warner, who has three girls with wife, Candice, says it must be “an opener’s thing”.

It must be an opener’s thing to file all your daughters under the same letter, too, as the Warner girls are: Ivy Mae, Indi Rae and Isla Rose.

Warner was in the news for the wrong reasons after being caught drink driving in Maroubra this week. Some of the public reaction has been very harsh. The former Australian star isn’t everyone’s favourite. The mob rarely forgives or forgets.

It’s no secret I like the guy, but I get to see a side of him most don’t.

Warner, who is one of the most devoted family men you will meet, was back in town briefly to be with his girls for Easter. While here, he also organised the St Andrews Beach, which he is a part-owner of, to provide beer for the Chappell Foundation’s Melbourne Golf Day. Generous. Loyal by nature, he is always happy to help out when we ask for anything, and even flew down last year to play the course with our other supporters.