Usman Khawaja, an Australian cricket player, says he will “fight” the decision to wear shoes with pro-Palestinian inscriptions on them.

At a Test match against Pakistan, the batter had intended to wear shoes with the phrases “freedom is a human right” and “all lives are equal” on them.

According to Khawaja, the International Cricket Council forbade this because it deemed the remarks to be “political”.

He clarified in a video message that the words on his shoes were only a “humanitarian appeal”.

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The 36-year-old said in the tearful video that was uploaded to Instagram on Wednesday, “I will respect (the International Cricket Council’s) view and decision, but I will fight it and seek to gain approval.”

While preparing for the next Test in Perth, Khawaja, a Muslim, was seen wearing the sneakers earlier this week. He has previously advocated for Gaza’s inhabitants on social media.

“No one gets to pick their birthplace… Growing up, I already sensed that my life wasn’t on par with others’. Fortunately, though, I have never lived in a society where inequality meant the difference between life and death,” he remarked.

Khawaja had shared a Gaza-based Unicef video on Instagram along with the following remarks: “Do people not care about the killing of innocent people? Or do they become less significant because of the color of their skin? or the faith they follow? If you genuinely believe that “we are all equal,” then these things should not matter.”

According to Australia’s cricket board, Khawaja needs to follow international regulations that forbid “personal messages”.

“We back our players’ freedom to voice their personal beliefs. However, the players are expected to respect the ICC’s rules, which forbid the display of private messages, according to a statement released by Cricket Australia on Wednesday.

According to Captain Pat Cummins, “I don’t think his intention was to make too big of a fuss.”

“All lives are equal, I believe he had. That doesn’t seem to be that polarizing. Nobody can really have too many complaints about it, in my opinion.”

Anika Wells, the minister of sport, also told reporters that she didn’t think his shoes broke any ICC regulations.

“A fantastic athlete and fellow Australian, Usman Khawaja is.” He must should be able to voice his opinions on issues that are significant to him. He’s done it in a civil and courteous manner,” she remarked.

However, former Australian cricket players Simon O’Donnell and Rodney Hogg have stated that political statements have no place on the pitch.

“Absolutely respecting Usman Khawaja’s own convictions… Nonetheless, O’Donnell stated on local SEN radio that “he has no right, zero, zero, to bring his personal beliefs and instill those onto others while he’s representing Australia.”

Players and officials are prohibited from wearing anything with “potentially divisive” or political themes on it without the governing body’s permission, according to ICC regulations.

Referees are also authorized by the regulations to prevent players from entering the field if they are wearing any “non-compliant” apparel.

Similar advice was given to England batter Moeen Ali in 2014 before a Test match against India, telling him to cease wearing wristbands endorsing Gaza.