Australia retain 13-member squad for second Test against India
McDonald also addresses the decline in Labuschagne's form
PERTH: Australia have decided to stick to their 13-member squad for the second Test against India despite an agonizing defeat in the series opener, coach and selector Andrew McDonald confirmed.
Australia on Monday, succumbed to their first-ever Test defeat at Optus Stadium here. Their 295-run defeat was also India’s biggest Test victory in terms of runs in Australia.
The home side’s coach McDonald, however, showed faith in the current 13-member squad to stage a comeback in the second Test – a day-night fixture, scheduled to commence on December 6 at the Adelaide Oval.
"The same people in that changeroom are the same people that will be in Adelaide. It is always a consideration, wherever you go in the world in terms of the personnel you pick for conditions,” stated McDonald.
McDonald also addressed Marnus Labuschagne’s rough patch with the bat and offered his backing for the latter, highlighting he is the player they need.
“I mean, we look at the way he plays and when he’s at his best, and when we’ve seen him at his best, he’s shown great intent at the crease,” McDonald said.
"That's an ongoing discussion and that ebbs and flows in players' careers, so at the moment he's in one of those patches and no doubt he'll be getting critiqued externally. But internally we're really confident that, at his best, he's the player that we need,” McDonald added.
When probed about the root cause of Labuschagne’s declining form, Andrew McDonald stressed there were few factors before expressing his confidence that the right-handed batter ‘can turn that around’.
“It’s always a combination of factors, isn’t it, with the mindset?” he said.
“There’s some technical aspects to that also within the mindset play. So as I said, we’re really confident that he can turn that around.”
Australia's squad for Adelaide Test
Pat Cummins (c), Scott Boland, Alex Carey, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Josh Inglis, Usman Khawaja, Marnus Labuschagne, Nathan Lyon, Mitch Marsh, Nathan McSweeney, Steve Smith, Mitchell Starc.
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