"Biggest difference is just Marnus Labuschagne's intent to score": Former Australian cricketer

Marnus Labuschagne (Pic: File Pic)

Former Australia batsman Michael Hussey feels that Marnus Labuschagne can turn around his fortunes if he focuses on scoring runs instead of just occupying the crease with an aim to soak all pressure and deliveries.

Marnus Labuschgane's poor run in the longest format of the game continues. In the Perth Test, the right-hander could accumulate just two runs in 52 balls. Later, in the second innings, Labuschagne departed after playing a three-run knock. Australia lost the match by 295 runs against Team India.

Marnus Labuschagne's form came under surveillance as he has not been able to score a century since July last year against England.

In 13 ICC World Test Championship (2023-25) matches, the batter has managed just 658 runs at an average of 27.41, with barely a century and five fifties to show in 26 innings. His best score is 111.

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This year, Marnus Labuschagne has scored just 245 runs in six Test matches. With an average of 24.50, he has two half-centuries. Since his last Test century, he has scored just 352 runs in nine matches, averaging a poor 22.00, with four fifties to his name. His best score is 90.

Speaking to SEN, Hussey said that he went back to old highlights of Labuschagne, and the difference as compared to his current self is not that much. The only issue is the "tentative defensive frame of mind" of the batter trying to fulfil his role as a senior batter and not fully expressing himself.

"I actually went back and had a look at some of his highlights of some of his great innings from a few years back. It was just to see if I could see anything different than what we have been seeing in the last week or so," Hussey told SEN.

"From a technical perspective, there is actually not a lot of difference from when he was playing really well in scoring a lot of runs compared to the last Test match against India. The biggest difference I have noticed is just his intent to score. He is probably looking at it thinking, 'I am a senior player now, I have got to take responsibility, I have got to bat time, be there for the team, soak up the pressure, and all of that."

"That gets you into a tentative defensive frame of mind--of batting time, being there, and being patient. Whereas when I watched some of those highlights from a few years back, he was just confident and decisive in everything he did, even in defence and when he was letting the ball go he was getting into really strong positions," he concluded.

Hussey has pinned most of the batter's recent setbacks to his mindset and wants him to be more confident, decisive, and positive while batting.

"I feel as though it is something that can be fixed really quickly just with a mindset shift. If he can just change that mindset of just looking to occupy the crease ...into, 'Whatever I do, I am going to do it confidently, decisively and be a little bit more positive with an intent to score.' I feel like he can turn it around really quickly," he concluded.

The second pink-ball Test will take place at Adelaide Oval from December 6 onwards.

(With ANI Inputs)