Usman Khawaja tons up in Sheffield Shield as teammate's purple patch continues
Usman Khawaja's return to the Sheffield Shield has yielded a classy century for the Test opener, while a young teammate's purple patch continued against Tasmania.
The 38-year-old brought up triple-figures on the first day of Queensland's clash with the Tigers, reaching the milestone off 174 deliveries.
He was eventually dismissed for 127, which included 12 fours and one maximum, in a knock that marked the 43rd first-class ton of Khawaja's storied career.
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Khawaja last played during Australia's tour of Sri Lanka, where he blew the hosts away with a career-best 232 in Galle in the series opener.
His knock got the Bulls off to a strong start at Bellerive Oval, despite others in the top order - including Matt Renshaw - failing to convert their starts.
Usman Khawaja celebrates a century against Tasmania. Getty
However, the veteran did eventually get some assistance from the in-form Lachlan Hearne, who has started to turn heads this summer with some strong performances in both first-class and List A cricket for his state, including a breakthrough century.
The 24-year-old reached his fifty against Tassie in the afternoon session and remains unbeaten alongside Khawaja heading towards the end of play on Thursday.
Hearne and Khawaja put on 164 for the fourth-wicket partnership.
Elsewhere in the Shield competition, Victoria were bowled out for 285 in their match against South Australia, with seamers Jordan Buckingham (4-70) and Henry Thornton (4-42) doing the bulk of the damage with ball in hand.
