Steven Smith says he is “proud” of Marnus Labuschagne after the Queenslander’s glut of early-season runs left Australia’s selectors with what feels like an unavoidable decision ahead of the first Ashes Test.
Labuschagne, jettisoned during the West Indies series in March, has responded with two Sheffield Shield hundreds in as many outings and four centuries in five domestic innings overall. A formal recall is still to be rubber-stamped, yet few within Australian cricket doubt it will arrive.
“I sent him a message a couple of days ago saying how proud I was of him,” Smith said. “He’s just gone back and he’s got his fourth hundred in five hits. It’s a pretty big statement. He said to me at the start of the summer, he goes, ‘I’ll be in that Test team come the first [Ashes] Test’. He’s backed up his words, probably. He’s obviously not selected yet, [but] he’s done a lot of things right.”
Labuschagne himself has admitted he became “too deep” in the mechanics of his technique while out of the side, chasing perfection rather than flow. Smith’s own remedy was plain: “I think my advice to him was ‘stop thinking so technically, just go and play the game; watch the ball and react’. I think he’s been doing that really beautifully and he’s played so nicely.”
The conversation now shifts from whether Labuschagne plays to where he plays. Sam Konstas, the incumbent partner for Usman Khawaja at the top of the order, is battling for form. Labuschagne opened in the World Test Championship final against South Africa and could reprise the role if the panel opts for experience ahead of a specialist opener.
“He can open, as we saw in the Test championship final,” Smith noted. “He can bat three. He’s versatile. We’ll see where it all stands when the team gets picked. I mean, it’s not too different to batting three, to be honest. He could be in first ball. So, it’s essentially the same thing. I don’t think he needs to change anything if that’s the case. Just play the game, play how he has been, and see the ball hit it, and trust his instincts.”
Selectors must also weigh how many overs they expect from all-rounder Cameron Green and whether Beau Webster’s medium pace is required. Those bowling calculations could dictate whether a specialist opener is sacrificed to strengthen the middle order or vice versa.
Smith himself remains open to shuffling up a spot. After a brief stint as Test opener in early 2024 he returned to No.4 last season, averaging 53.27 against India and Sri Lanka. The prospect of moving back to first drop does not bother him.
“I’m not too fussed, to be honest,” he said. “I’m happy kind of wherever. But, yeah, we’ll see what happens when the team’s picked where we’ll talk to the coaches and Patty [Cummins] and see where everyone fits in best, I suppose, and keep it as simple as that.”
Regardless of the final order, Labuschagne’s revival offers Australia welcome stability. The right-hander’s willingness to strip back method and trust instinct could yet become a case study for players wrestling with form.
“We’ve all been there [dropped] at some point in our careers and it’s difficult to hear it,” Smith reflected. “But I think he knew he probably wasn’t batting as well as he had been over probably four years ago when he was scoring a mountain of runs.”
With the first Ashes Test less than two months away, the mountain of runs is back. It is difficult to imagine Labuschagne watching from anywhere other than England’s slip cordon.
