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September 18, 2026 \u2014 12:04pm<\/p>\n
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Remove items from your saved list<\/a> to add more.<\/p>\n AAA<\/p>\n Marnus Labuschagne is a man under siege, but insists he is not a spent force on the international stage as he fights to save his career in the Baggy Green.<\/p>\n As he prepares to captain Queensland in their first one-day clash of the season against Victoria on Saturday, the Test No.3 also felt he still had a role to play in Australia\u2019s limited overs side ahead of next year\u2019s World Cup, despite being omitted from the squads to face Zimbabwe and South Africa.<\/p>\n Labuschagne burst onto the scene in the Test arena and was at one stage ranked as the world\u2019s best batsman. But his form woes over the past three years have been well documented \u2013 scoring just one century since the start of the 2023 Ashes, and averaging 26.27 since the start of that series.<\/p>\n Those woes continued in August\u2019s two-Test series against Bangladesh, with scores of one and 31 in Darwin followed by a limp dismissal for four in Mackay<\/a> in which he strayed across his off stump and watched the ball cannon off his thigh guard and into his pegs.<\/p>\n It has triggered widespread criticism and left his future in the side on shaky ground, with the likes of Australian great Ricky Ponting questioning his selection for the forthcoming three-Test series against the Proteas next month.<\/p>\n Related Article Labuschagne, however, stressed the chatter had not fazed him, as he vowed to right those wrongs in South Africa.<\/p>\n \u201cCriticism is part of the job if you want to be an international player. You can\u2019t be sitting here going \u2018I\u2019m upset because people are criticising me\u2019, no one is criticising my character or my personality or who I am and what I stand for,\u201d Labuschagne said on Friday, speaking from Allan Border Field as Queensland Cricket celebrated their 150th year.<\/p>\n \u201cThey\u2019re criticising my performance, and I\u2019m the one who\u2019s allowed that; because of the lack of performance, I\u2019ve opened myself up to criticism. There\u2019s clearly a reason why I\u2019m still there, and I think the people who are in charge know that and know what I\u2019ve done in the past for Australia.<\/p>\n \u201cHow I\u2019ve performed the past two years is clearly not my standard and where I want to be, and I\u2019m doing everything possible to make sure I get back there during this series in South Africa.\u201d<\/p>\n Labuschagne began the last domestic summer tipped to end his run of poor outputs on the biggest stage after striking two Sheffield Shield tons and four one-day centuries for the Bulls before the Ashes. But his inability to transfer that into the national colours cost him his 50-over spot.<\/p>\n From 23 ODI matches since the start of 2024, he has averaged just 21.88, having impressed as a middle order staple in 2023 (826 runs at 45.89). But the 32-year-old has sought a \u201csilver lining\u201d in his omission, adamant his chance to impress for Queensland and the opportunity to work closely with new Bulls coach James Hopes had given him ideal preparation time for South Africa.<\/p>\n \u201cObviously, it\u2019s always disappointing when you don\u2019t get selected for Australia, but I\u2019m also pretty experienced now, and I know my performances haven\u2019t been where I needed them in international one-day cricket,\u201d Labuschagne said.<\/p>\n \u201cLast year I showed I\u2019m playing very good domestic one-day cricket, and I\u2019m not coming out here needing to prove to anyone I\u2019m a good enough player.<\/p>\n Related Article \u201cOut here, I want to score as many runs as I can, and any runs you score is going to be good for your confidence and get me into a really good space going into South Africa, regardless of the format.\u201d<\/p>\n While a lack of replacements for Labuschagne in the Test arena has seemingly sparred him \u2013 Nathan McSweeney and Kurtis Patterson among those not taken, with spin-bowling allrounder Cooper Connolly instead called upon \u2013 his dearth of one-day runs opened the door for fellow Queenslander Matt Renshaw to become a three-format player.<\/p>\n The 30-year-old earned a recall to the Test squad as an opener in place of Jake Weatherald, while he struck his maiden ODI hundred against Zimbabwe this week as a middle order anchor.<\/p>\n Former Test star Usman Khawaja, who has locked himself in for another Big Bash campaign with the Brisbane Heat, believed Renshaw could be a long-term staple across all formats for Australia.<\/p>\n \u201cI think Matty is an unbelievable talent; he\u2019s got all the gears, which he didn\u2019t have growing up. He had the lower gears, but he didn\u2019t have the higher gears,\u201d Khawaja said.<\/p>\n \u201cHe\u2019s a big boy, he can hit a big ball, which is beautiful when you\u2019ve got a guy coming in at six who can bat normally \u2013 he\u2019s a Test opener \u2013 but then also have the power.<\/p>\n \u201cWhen he was playing white ball cricket for the last maybe year or so \u2013 T20 cricket then into one-day cricket \u2013 I thought there was no better time for him to play Test cricket again, when you\u2019re playing all three formats.<\/p>\n \u201cHe\u2019s always been a terrific player, but Test cricket is always a different level \u2013 it\u2019s always a bit tougher, there\u2019s a lot that goes into it off the field in particular \u2013 so I have no doubt he\u2019ll do well.\u201d<\/p>\n Start the day with a summary of the day\u2019s most important and interesting stories, analysis and insights. Sign up for our Morning Edition newsletter<\/a>.<\/p>\n Save<\/p>\n You have reached your maximum number of saved items.<\/p>\n![\"Marnus](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/01f1ac1a973ee3f1aad64e747cce7a911177ffa2.jpeg\")
Marnus Labuschagne insists his game is \u201cin good order\u201d.Getty Images<\/p>\n![\"Great](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/8c054519c317d37b82ab42d3534c0dc71280e39c1f0c474f857b71f179207675.jpeg\")
<\/a><\/p>\n![\"Marnus](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/9594bb7443cef69e0c1138e3ff4865b01317b28356bac36bc3e58ac0adc2a62e.jpeg\")
Marnus Labuschagne pictured for Australian in one-day cricket.AP<\/p>\n![\"Marnus](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/74589d0aa0feab77e2ea5a428cef74d32fb79f3f.jpeg\")
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