Crash: Marnus Labuschagne defiant in fight for Test survival against India at Adelaide

No-one had to tell Marnus Labuschagne what was at stake, writes ROBERT CRADDOCK. He resembled a man steeling himself to claw his way from a deep dark hole to a safer world.

Marnus Labuschagne defiantly scratched his guard eight times before he faced his first ball at the Adelaide Oval on Friday night.

Looking like a boxer smacking his gloves together before a fight, no-one had to tell him what was at stake.

Labuschagne resembled a man steeling himself to claw his way, inch by painful inch, from a deep dark hole to a safer world.

Television close-ups of Labuschagne’s face told of a fierce intensity bordering on anguish as he seemed as tightly wound as the strings of a grand piano.

It helped him that, at the other end, was the surprisingly soothing presence of rookie Nathan McSweeney whom Labuschagne branded a future star when he first saw him bat as a 12-year-old.

McSweeney looked the genuine Test match article in an innings which reinforced his reputation as a player who gets rugged runs when bowlers are kings.

Marnus Labuschagne talks to Nathan McSweeney during their half-century stand. Picture: Getty Images

There are some days in cricket when the sun is on your back and the wind is behind your sails when batting is a breeze.

And there’s other godforsaken nights when you are facing Jasprit Bumrah under lights – which went off twice – and you just have to scrap and scramble your way to a brighter world.

Labuschagne will resume on day two of the second Test on 20 from 67 balls after one of the most important innings of his career.

“Arguably the hardest time the bat is that third session with a brand new pink ball, so to finish the day one down, particularly ‘Marn’ and McSweeney there, to fight through that (with) obviously sustained pressure from a quality bowling attack,” said Mitchell Starc, who also enjoyed a fantastic opening day, after play.

“They came out the other end with a chance to go on tomorrow, which was fantastic from them.

“(There was) obviously a fair bit of outside noise, particularly from this room, so yeah, I’m very pleased for them.”

Marnus Labuschagne scored 20 runs from 67 balls. Picture AFP

It was far from the prettiest or most fluent innings – he faced 19 balls before getting off the mark – but with just 123 runs at average of 13 in his last five Tests he needed to produce something solid here to save his future.

He has almost done that now.

His intensity was evident as “Crazy Marnus’’ returned with some loud calls and extravagant leaves and once he stared down Bumrah and shouted an adrenaline-infused “C’mon’’ to himself.

Marnus Labuschagne wagon wheel from the first day of the Adelaide Test.

On another occasion he backed away from Mohammad Siraj when distracted by a fan behind the sight screen and the frustrated bowler threw the ball to the keeper.

Next ball Labuschagne glided one behind point for four and received one of the night’s biggest cheers.

Then on came Harshit Rana, pushing the speedometer beyond 140kph and directing plenty of hot stares and the occasional word Labuschagne’s way.

India went hard at him and, in a strange sort of way, that seemed to galvanise his focus given he was in full battle mode.

Labuschagne has been criticised for being too sedate in the first Test but again his Plan A was to let dangerous balls go in the knowledge that if Australia could scramble through the last session to be one wicket down they would have a stranglehold on this game.

He did and they have.