Marnus Labuschagne is set to be dropped for Australia’s upcoming Test series against New Zealand in December and January, following his poor returns in the tour of South Africa. While the squad for the first Test is yet to be announced, selection chair George Bailey confirmed to the media on Monday (November 9) that Labuschagne will not be considered for the series at this point.
“At this stage, we won't be considering Marn for selection for certainly that first Test, but for the New Zealand series,” Bailey said. “There's been a lot of speculation around his place in the team, and so I think this gives him a little bit of space and clears up a bit of conjecture as we work through the next round of [Sheffield] Shield cricket.”
It marks the second time in the last 17 months that the axe has fallen on Labuschagne’s Test spot. For long a mainstay at No. 3, his century-less run has now extended to 49 innings since his last hundred in the 2023 Ashes in Manchester. A poor run of form cost him his spot during the tour of West Indies that followed last year’s World Test Championship final, although he was still part of the squad.
After a strong start to the domestic season, Labuschagne returned to his No. 3 spot for the home Ashes. He started the series well with a fifty in each of the first two Tests before his returns petered out. He has since gone 16 innings without a fifty, returning 36 runs at an average of 12 against Bangladesh and 131 runs at an average of 21.83 in South Africa. Australia failed to win both series, settling for a 1-1 draw against Bangladesh and going down 2-1 in South Africa.
While acknowledging Labuschagne’s lack of returns, Bailey did not rule out a return to the side. Following the four Tests against New Zealand is a five-Test tour of India, while Australia are also due to play an away Ashes series next year.
“It's still possible, absolutely,” Bailey said. “And I think we all know how good and how effective Marnus can be at his best. But that performance hasn't been there. I think he's missed some opportunities, some promising starts in Darwin [against Bangladesh] and even in South Africa as well, to go on and get a big score that we'd like and would have liked for some time, and that just hasn't happened.
“But I don't think we've ever ruled anyone out permanently…and that's no different in this case.”
Bailey confirmed that the Test squad will be announced at the end of the next round of the Sheffield Shield, which begins on Wednesday [November 11]. He also reiterated the need to clear the air with increased scrutiny over Labuschagne’s spot in the side.
“We just felt like this one was an important one, as much for Marn, just to give him the space. He'll obviously go back and captain Queensland. [We] didn't really think it was beneficial to have that conjecture hanging over his head for the next week or so,” Bailey said.
