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Marnus Labuschagne has been struggling in Test cricket having managed just 123 runs in his last 10 innings and calls for dropping him are growing.
Marnus Labuschagne scored five runs in the series opener in Perth. (AP Photo)
Australia will be under pressure when they take the field against India for the second Test of their ongoing Border-Gavaskar Trophy having received a thrashing in the series opener last month. Among the top concerns for the hosts is the dwindling form of their No. 3 Marnus Labuschagne who has managed just 123 runs from his last 10 innings in Test cricket.
In the Perth Test that India won by 295 runs, Labuschagne managed a combined five runs across the two innings with former Australia fast bowler Mitchell Johnson saying the batter has to be dropped for the second Test in Adelaide. He felt that playing domestic cricket will be beneficial to the under-fire batter.
With 19-year-old opener Sam Konstas scoring a superb century during a pink-ball warmup match against India on Sunday, the calls will only grow to blood in the youngster so that Nathan McSweeney, who made his Test debut as opener in the Perth Test, can bat at his usual no. 3 spot.
However, former England captain Michael Vaughan has warned against making any changes to the batting order so early into the series and feels that it has the potential to create “a bit of chaos”.
“I’d go again (with Labuschagne). I’m a big believer that once you start a series with a team, unless there’s an injury or two and you have to change the formation, because of that, you made the call,” Vaughan told SEN.
“I believe you keep the same side for two or three games, try and get them playing together. If you start swapping and changing the side, that can create a bit more chaos in the batting unit,” he added.
Vaughan admitted that while Labuschagne isn’t at his but feels that Day-Night Test in Adelaide could see him play more freely.
“It’s not the Marnus of three or four years ago, so he’s got to find a method of looking to score and being a bit more positive, I think we’ll see that in Adelaide,” Vaughan said.
