Key figures push for Marnus Labuschagne to test captaincy skills as Queensland skipper

Marnus Labuschagne is being pushed to take over as Queensland state captain as part of a push to save Australia from a leadership vacuum at Test level.

Marnus Labuschagne. Picture: Getty Images

Moves are underway for Marnus Labuschagne to be given essential leadership experience as Australia looks to groom future candidates for the Test captaincy.

Pressure is mounting on Queensland to respond to a push from high-powered figures within Australian cricket to promote Labuschagne as their state captain, potentially as early as April.

While Queensland has no issues with Usman Khawaja as their skipper and Labuschagne is not coveting an elevation, a precious opportunity has emerged for the star batsman to enter the conversation to be Australia’s next captain, with it clear there is no obvious successor to Tim Paine.

Marnus Labuschagne is a vital member of the Australian Test team. Picture: Getty Images

Queensland are currently ranked No.1 in the Sheffield Shield, and should they qualify for the final on April 15, Labuschagne would be back from South Africa and available to play.

Although it might be a stretch to shoehorn him in ahead of Khawaja for a final, there are then at least three 50-over State matches in late April where Labuschagne could take over the reins and start learning on the job.

At the very least a change next season in Queensland appears likely, with key figures at the top level of the game pushing Labuschagne’s name to captain when available amid fears there is a leadership void opening up in Australian cricket.

National selector Trevor Hohns has maintained for a couple of seasons that he would like states to have the national interest in mind by promoting future leaders – and those calls are only growing louder after India exposed Australia’s soft underbelly.

Marnus Labuschagne could be given a chance to captain Queensland when he returns from Australia’s Test tour of South Africa. Picture: Getty Images

“We are always looking for leaders and trying to, where the opportunity arises, give somebody some experience,” Hohns said earlier this week.

“Over the last week or two, there has been various names thrown up and let’s face it, we’ve got to canvas all those options and try and come up with a leader or a group of leaders – which is what we’ve done over the last few years – who could take Australian cricket forward.”

Many in the game have dismissed Labuschagne’s credentials as a future Test captain, because of a feeling he is immature and not the right personality.

But at 26 years of age and with a Test batting average of 60, Labuschagne has a head start on most other candidates, in that he’s a lock to be in the team for the next five years and has time on his side to grow in stature and maturity.

Marnus Labuschagne has support to become Tim Paine’s successor as Test skipper. Picture: Getty Images

Labuschagne has a genuine cricket IQ and on-field smarts as revealed by his on-mic work in the BBL and the technical help he gave Paine with his batting this summer.

There are key people in Australian cricket who think Labuschagne is worth the investment. Shane Warne and Michael Vaughan have also sung his praises as a potential captaincy option.

For Queensland, pushing Labuschagne’s barrow would be a chance to shape history.

Labuschagne was born in South Africa, but moved to Queensland at a young age and has come through their system. As it stands, Shane Watson is the only Queensland-raised player to have ever captained Australia in a Test match.

Sydney product Bill Brown moved to Queensland during his career, while Greg Chappell (South Australia) and Allan Border (NSW) also came from other States before captaining Australia from Queensland.

But in recent years, States have resisted being told what to do by Cricket Australia.

Marnus Labuschagne averages 60 in Test cricket. Picture: AFP

NSW gave no thought to subbing Peter Nevill out as Shield captain at the start of last summer so Pat Cummins could have a crack in the top job for a couple of games, while Queensland had an opportunity to go with Labuschagne during the Shield rounds in October, but were happy to stick with Khawaja.

The argument from the states is they want the stability of a captain who will be in charge for an entire season, not chopped out after a couple of games to go and play for Australia.

But the system has failed to produce potential successors to Paine, who is 36 and is unlikely to captain past next summer’s Ashes.

Several ex-greats believe if Paine’s overworked as skipper and wicketkeeper, how can the team’s spearhead fast bowler possibly take on the responsibility of leading?

While Australia still don’t appear to have worked through the process required to determine whether Steve Smith should captain his country again.

Originally published as Key figures push for Marnus Labuschagne to test captaincy skills as Queensland skipper