Eng v Aus, Men’s Ashes 2023 – Marnus Labuschagne works to overcome technical issues

Marnus Labuschagne’s dismissals at Edgbaston were something the Australian coaching staff had not seen before, but he will be confident he can respond in the second Test at Lord’s.

Labuschagne fell behind against Stuart Broad on deliveries he could have left, and his first innings golden duck came from a particularly wide ball when Broad succeeded with a new outswinger that he said he had worked on specifically for Labuschagne and Steven Smith.

In perhaps the least surprising news of the tour, both Labuschagne and Smith – the latter also had a lean Opening Test – took part in an online session on Saturday, which was held only for those not playing at Edgbaston. Head coach Andrew McDonald had called it “mind-blowing” that Australia had won by just 35 runs between the top two batsmen.

Labuschagne returned to being much calmer at the crease with only minimal firing compared to the exaggerated movement seen in the first Test during a long session against the Australian coaches’ throws.

“It was back to normal,” hitting coach Michael Di Venuto said. “I hadn’t seen what happened in the first Test, I hadn’t seen it. And it certainly didn’t happen the week before at The Oval. Whatever it was, hopefully it was short and he can get back to normal this week.”

When asked if the heated atmosphere at Edgbaston could have played a role, Di Venuto added: “Possibly. Marn is the only one who can answer that. He has a few other reasons why he thinks he played the ball he thinks he played. As we saw today, hopefully he is back on track.”

However, he said Labuschagne’s work in the nets was unrelated to the encounter with Broad. He added that Labuschagne initiated all the tinkering in collaboration with his batting coach Neil D’Costa, who shares his input with the Australian staff.

“Marnus is always working on his game,” he said. “You’ve all seen him train before, he’s meticulous about his preparation. He’s constantly tinkering with different things technically. It’s all pretty normal for Marni.

“Marn is his best trainer. Same as Smudge [Smith]. They are their own best coaches. They’re great problem solvers and that’s why they’ve been such great players for Australia for a while.”

On Saturday, Labuschagne received a painful blow to the index finger of his right hand. He remained on the ground for some time before removing his gloves and being checked over by team doctor Leigh Golding, but he was able to continue and complete the training session.

“He’s got a finger that’s taken a couple of hits. I think he just got another one,” di Venuto said.

The second Test at Lord’s brings Labuschagne back to where his career took off in 2019 when he came in for Smith’s concussion dive. Since then, he has been prolific, scoring 10 Test hundreds at an average that has occasionally crossed 60, although he is currently relatively lean with two half-centuries and an average of 33.14 in his last 17 innings.

Time will tell if Broad’s dismissals are the start of a pattern for the series, but di Venuto saw it as the challenges that Test cricket can offer.

“He is a quality bowler and has been for a long time,” he said. “You expect the bowlers to come up with schemes and come up with different tactics than they have in the past. It’s no different to the rest of the series at the moment.”

Meanwhile, the coaching staff have been encouraged by what they’ve seen from David Warner in the World Cup final against India and the first Ashes encounter, although he hasn’t changed his output significantly.

Warner scored 43 in the first innings against India and then 36 in the second innings at Edgbaston as part of an opening stand of 61 that set Australia up for a chase of 281. However, in both innings he was removed from the door – first. Broad, for the 15th time in Test cricket, then Ollie Robinson.

“He’s back to a little more of the Davey he knows,” di Venuto said. “Moving to the ball, a lot of energy on the court, towards the offense. There are really good signs that he can be successful around the corner.”

The team had a new addition to training at the weekend, as Queensland wicketkeeper Jimmy Peirson arrived to replace Josh Inglis, who has flown home due to the birth of his child.