The Ashes: Why we’ll never know if Marnus Labuschagne is the man to lead Australia
Despite a Test batting average of 60 and being in the prime of his career, Marnus Labuschange couldn’t get a job interview last week – Robert Craddock explains why.
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Marnus Labuschagne would not mind being a leader but Cricket Australia would much prefer him just to be himself.
This, in essence, sums up the intriguing standoff surrounding Labuschagne’s captaincy future in Australian cricket.
When Australia announced its new captaincy duo of Pat Cummins and Steve Smith last week it was no shock Labuschagne was not among them.
But it was a surprise that, at age 27 with a Test batting average of 60 and seemingly an anchorman for the next generation, he didn’t even get an interview.
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What happens if Cummins pulls a hamstring in the Ashes? Smith moves up but who is the next vice-captain?
Any danger of a bit of planning or investment?
When you have Shane Warne, Greg Chappell and Adam Gilchrist, with their collective experience of 328 Tests, saying that a guy is worth looking at, as they did with Labuschagne, it is a quite a big call to decide he is not even worth a chat.
When it comes to vice-captaincy appointments Australia does tend to snatch at things.
The board has reportedly gone with the line that Labuschagne’s boyish Energizer Bunny personality is best left to see him buzz around the room rather than lead it, that the voices supporting him are not coming from the dressing room and that he is not suited to leading players older than him.
That’s fine – selectors said the same thing about Don Bradman once and were probably right – but people do have a right to grow up.
There was a time when Ricky Ponting sat with a black eye after a Bourbon and Beefsteak blue and seemed a 20-1 chance to captain Australia.
There were years when Steve Smith was a quiet, quirky kid and no-ones idea of a leader and times when Steve Waugh was the insular lad who sat in the corner of the dressing room and went a decade without having a long chat with Allan Border.
They all got there eventually.
People grow with opportunity.
Had the board interviewed Labuschagne at least they would have got to know him a bit better than they currently do and certainly got him thinking about the potential opportunities head.
They may well have flicked a switch that decreed the next time he wanted to make a fuss over getting out to a ball that flicked his thigh rather than his bat a little voice went off inside his head that went “actually, I’m just going to walk off.’’
Labuschagne may have some rough edges but there are parts of his personality suited to captaincy such as leading by example.
There have been any number of Australian batting captains who refused to bat as high as No 3 in the order but when Labuschagne was offered the chance by Greg Chappell during a rugged series against Indies three years ago he thought it was Christmas.
A few years ago there was an incident in Perth when an Australian vice-captain got scolded by his skipper for saying “this wicket is soooo bloody green?’’ in the dressing room because it put teammates on edge.
That would not happen with Labuschagne who gets off on taking on bowlers on rugged decks.
Zest for the contest. It may bot be the be-all of captaincy but it’s not a bad start.
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