Australia coach pleased with proactive approach from 31-year-old aiming to win back Ashes berth

Marnus Labuschagne remains squarely in the frame to open against England this summer with Australian selectors impressed by how the former No.1 Test batter has implemented technical adjustments in his blazing start to the domestic summer.

Labuschagne has peeled off three centuries in four innings for Queensland to begin the season, including a 206-ball 160 in the Bulls’ opening Sheffield Shield match at Allan Border Field against Tasmania.

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That his runs came after he started his innings against a 39-over ball on a flat wicket at a non-Test venue against an honest attack in a drawn match (only 27 wickets fell in four days) means the knock did not necessarily see him jump the likes of incumbent Sam Konstas, who failed twice on a seaming WACA pitch for NSW.

Jake Weatherald (67 and 57) also kept his name in the conversation in the same Brisbane run-fest, as did Matthew Renshaw (128) after the left-hander effectively replaced Labuschagne in the ODI squad this week.

But coach Andrew McDonald gave Labuschagne a “big tick” for having adjusted his batting approach after he was first replaced by Cameron Green at No.3 for the World Test Championship final this year – he opened instead – and was then dropped altogether for the ensuing Caribbean tour.  

The Aussies are bullish Green can remain at first-drop when he returns to bowling in the Ashes (he played the winter as a batter only as he recovered from back surgery) leaving Labuschagne’s most likely route back into the team as Usman Khawaja’s partner against the new ball.

“We definitely see Marnus as an opening option,” McDonald told reporters today.

“He’s had an outstanding record at three for Australia. He is doing all the right things at the moment with three domestic hundreds in four hits.

“More impressive was the method that he applied, in the front half of that innings in particular against Tassie at AB Field.

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“It’s not necessarily the output we’re looking for. Sometimes it’s the way he’s going about it, subtle changes that he has made to his game.

“To see those implemented first up in Shield round one, big tick for Marnus for all the work he’s done and on the back of a little layoff as well. Maybe he’s nice and fresh at the moment, he’s making some good decisions around his game.”

Labuschagne built a reputation as a compulsive trainer during his ascension to becoming the ICC’s top-ranked Test batter in 2022. He has said his axing has left him with a mandate to “train smarter” and have less of a focus on perfecting his technique.

Australia’s leaders have been eager for him to avoid getting bogged down early on in his innings. His strike-rate in Test cricket gradually diminished before selectors lost patience with him, with his mark of 41.50 runs per 100 balls last home summer against India the lowest of any top-order batter that played in the series.

Labuschagne’s case for a recall comes amid a bigger picture of Australia’s top-order searching for an identity in the years after David Warner’s retirement.

Khawaja’s steady approach yielded plenty of runs after his return during the 2021-22 Ashes but has more recently been suspect against high pace, while Green can also be a slow starter and is still bedding down his game as a No.3.

Labuschagne’s recall as an opener may therefore hinge on how his more “proactive” (the word McDonald and Cummins have repeated when speaking about the style they want from him) approach continues to stand up in the Shield after he was left out of the ODI squad.

More One-Day Cup runs won’t hurt either after posting scores of 130, 2 and 105 in the Bulls’ first 50-over matches.

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Against Tasmania, his first 29 runs included six boundaries and came off just 28 balls. It was reminiscent of how he had begun many of his early Test innings and which the Australian camp had referred him back to in recent times.

The 31-year-old could face searching examinations from the likes of Nathan McAndrew, Sean Abbott, Nathan Lyon and Cameron Green over the coming weeks. The Bulls’ next three matches are against South Australia (at Adelaide Oval from October 15), NSW (at the SCG from October 28) and Western Australia (at the WACA Ground from November 11.

“Dave (Warner) was an outstanding opening batter that was able to put pressure back on bowlers. At his best, I think Marn can do that – and we’ve seen that in one day cricket,” said McDonald, while insisting he was not comparing Labuschagne with Warner.

“His one-day game has ebbed and flowed between putting pressure back on and then absorbing.

“He’s got the game. It’s just the willingness, at times, to be able to do that in the moment. There’s some real positive signs, albeit in a Shield game at AB Field on the back of a sizable partnership. But the method was impressive.

“The way he’s moving back into the ball, hitting the ball back down the ground, it felt like he’s close to his best. When he’s at his best, he does put pressure back on (bowlers).”

2025-26 NRMA Insurance Men’s Ashes

First Test: November 21-25, Perth Stadium, 1.30pm AEDT

Second Test: December 4-8, The Gabba, Brisbane (D/N), 3.30pm AEDT

Third Test: December 17-21: Adelaide Oval, 11am AEDT

Fourth Test: December 26-30: MCG, Melbourne, 10.30am AEDT

Fifth Test: January 4-8: SCG, Sydney, 10.30am AEDT