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Gilchrist backed the under-fire Marnus Labuschagne to continue his approach of starting things slow and facing as many deliveries as possible.
Australia batter Marnus Labuschagne
With Australia’s batters struggling to find form, the legendary wicketkeeper batter, Adam Gilchrist as asked the batting unit to focus on staying longer in the middle to help nullify the threat posed by the Indian bowling attack led by Jasprit Bumrah.
Gilchrist backed the under-fire Marnus Labuschagne to continue his approach of starting things slow and facing as many deliveries as possible. The former Australian international feels that he will come good if the side can ‘weather the storm’.
“Marnus had the onus to do that (stay at the crease) and tried at good effect to nullify 50-odd deliveries. So, if you face an average of 50 deliveries every Test innings, you’re probably going to be on the right side of the ledger more than you’re on the wrong side of it,” Gilchrist was quoted as saying by Nine’s Wide World of Sports, as quoted by PTI.
“He just couldn’t find a way to score and maybe that’s what (the Australians) as a collective will look to try and do. It will bring with it risk, for sure, but it is a risk for reward,” he added.
Labuschagne has been under pressure to score after his poor run of form of late. But Gilchrist suggests that his lack of runs is not a technical issue but rather the brilliance shown by the opposition bowlers.
“I’m sure the people around him are already doing this but he needs to be reminded that he is a class act,” Gilchrist commented.
“He’s got a game that has been able to tolerate and withstand everything that the cricketing world has presented, and he’s dominated for a number of years,” he added.
Gilchrist feels that most experienced batters will have been in situations where runs have not come in when the side needed it and it is important that the player not lose track of the amount of work put behind the scenes all through their career.
The former star added, “Most players that have played long enough will have been in this situation at some point in time and it’s about not letting any self-doubt creep in and understanding you don’t lose that skill — you don’t lose that edge — (and) certainly not in a short space of time.”
Gilchrist concluded by asking Labuschagne to, “trust your training, get out there, see the ball and play it”.
Australia will be keen to bounce back after the loss in the Border-Gavaskar series opener as they take on India yet again in Adelaide for the pink ball Test match that begins on Friday.
