The sound of leather on willow rang out across Woodridge North State School’s oval this week, as more than 100 children took part in a cricket clinic many will remember for life. For most, it was their first time wielding a bat or bowling a ball. For all, it was a moment of connection—with a sport that defines Australia, and with a national figure who knows exactly what it’s like to grow up navigating new beginnings.
Australian cricketer Usman Khawaja, who arrived from Pakistan as a young child and went on to don the baggy green, joined coaches and community leaders to deliver a cricket clinic unlike any other. Organised in partnership with Settlement Services International (SSI) and the Usman Khawaja Foundation (UKF), the event marked the beginning of a wider effort to bring cricket to children from refugee and migrant backgrounds.
The mood on the field was jubilant. Students beamed as they tried their hand at batting, learned to bowl with spin and pace, and celebrated every catch with cheers that echoed across the school grounds. The game, for a few hours, became a shared language—a meeting point for cultures, stories, and dreams.
“We’re using cricket as a tool to build something much bigger,” said SSI CEO Violet Roumeliotis. “It’s about belonging, resilience, and giving kids the confidence to thrive. This is the start of something meaningful.”
The clinic is just the first of many planned across Queensland, New South Wales and Victoria. Alongside physical skills, the initiative is set to offer mentoring, workshops, and youth-led innovation hubs—creating spaces for young people to shape their future, not just play in it.
For Khawaja, the project carries personal weight. “When I was growing up, I didn’t see anyone who looked like me in the national team,” he said. “But I was lucky to have family, friends, and mentors who believed in me. Now I want to give that back.”
The Foundation he started is focused on equity and opportunity—values that match those at the core of SSI’s long-standing work with migrant and refugee communities. The two organisations now hope to extend this model across the country, where thousands of students are trying to find their footing in a new environment.
“There’s a quiet joy in seeing kids from different cultures pick up the same bat, bowl on the same pitch, and laugh with each other like they’ve known each other forever,” said one of the coaches at the clinic.
Beyond cricket, the initiative is also about mental health and social integration. Children from refugee backgrounds often face barriers to structured sport—from cost and access to cultural unfamiliarity. Programs like this aim to remove those blocks and open doors.
The partnership builds on the existing work of the SSI Multicultural Sports Club in Logan, which has long run inclusive activities for youth across communities. With UKF joining the fold, the ambition now is to grow those efforts into something national—and eventually, something permanent.
Roumeliotis believes the timing is right. “Australia is at a crossroads in how we welcome new communities. Sport is one of the most powerful ways to open up that welcome.”
Khawaja agrees. “This is about creating a generation that feels proud of where they come from and excited about where they’re going. If cricket can be part of that journey—and I believe it can—then we’re doing something right.”
As students packed up their gear and said goodbye to their cricket hero, one child was overheard saying, “I didn’t know I was good at this until today.”
That, perhaps, is the real win.
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