Australia are confident out of form batter Marnus Labuschagne can make a positive impact during next month’s three-match ICC World Test Championship tour of South Africa.
Labuschagne survived the cut on Monday when he was included in a 16-player squad for the crucial three-game series that commences in Durban on October 9, though Chair of Selectors George Bailey suggested there were no guarantees the 32-year-old would feature in the XI for the first Test given there was so much time before the series commences.
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The Aussies will take reserve batter Josh Inglis and young all-rounder Cooper Connolly on the tour as back-ups should Labuschagne lose his spot in the side, but Bailey believes runs are just around the corner for the former No.1 ranked player on the ICC Men’s Test Batter Rankings.
We are not shying away from the fact
“We are not shying away from the fact that we’d like some more runs from Marnus. That’s clear, but we’re also confident that he can still make a positive contribution to that squad,” Bailey said on Monday.
“I think our batting group in its entirety, not just Marnus, probably hasn’t been functioning as successfully as we would like, but also not shying away from the fact that we’ve continued to win a lot of Test matches over that period.
“And that ultimately, I think that’s the key, isn’t it? Scoring more runs than the opposition that you’re playing the game in.”
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You have to go way back to July of 2023 to find the last time Labuschagne scored a century at Test level and the right-hander looked out of sorts last month when he managed just 36 runs across three innings during the two-Test series at home against Bangladesh.
Bailey is hoping the fact Labuschagne was overlooked for the ODI series in South Africa prior to the Tests may help simplify his preparation, given his sole focus will be purely be on red-ball cricket.
I think Marn (Labuschagne) will continue to prepare
“I think Marn (Labuschagne) will continue to prepare and refine how he will prepare for this series,” Bailey added.
“Clearly there’s potentially a simplification or an ability to focus purely on red-ball cricket for him in the fact that he won’t be in the one day series leading up to it. So that may be a benefit.
“He’ll prepare incredibly well and specifically for this tour. And as I said, in that squad of 16, I’m confident that he can still make a positive contribution.”
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Australia will enter the series against the Proteas in first place on the World Test Championship standings, though South Africa are snapping at the heels in second position and well in contention for back-to-back titles.
And while last year’s defeat to South Africa in the World Test Championship Final at Lord’s was still fresh in Australia’s mind heading into the upcoming series, Bailey suggested taking on the Proteas across a three-game series away from home was a much different proposition to the one-off Test.
I think those one-off matches are a little
“I think those one-off matches are a little bit different, potentially, to a series,” Bailey said.
“But they are a formidable opponent. They’re a strong team, very, very strong bowling attack.
“They showed that in that World Test Championship Final, and we expect nothing different here. On that side of it, I think it’s shaping up. It’s going to be a fantastic series.”
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Australia squad: Pat Cummins (c), Scott Boland, Alex
Australia squad: Pat Cummins (c), Scott Boland, Alex Carey, Cooper Connolly, Cameron Green, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Josh Inglis, Matthew Kuhnemann, Marnus Labuschagne, Nathan Lyon, Michael Neser, Matthew Renshaw, Steve Smith, Mitchell Starc, Beau Webster
First Test: October 9-13, Durban
Second Test: October 18-22, Gqeberha
Third Test: October 27-31, Johannesburg
ICC World Test ChampionshipICC World Test Championship, 2025/27NewsMarnus Labuschagne
Source: www.icc-cricket.com
