England are on high alert for a Marnus Labuschagne and Steve Smith resurgence at Lord’s, not convinced Stuart Broad has already got the better of the Australian stars.
Labuschagne and Smith’s double-failures at Edgbaston marked the first time both had been dismissed for under 20 twice in the same match, despite Australia going on to win.
The low scores prompted both to drop in the ICC’s official rankings with Labuschagne losing top spot to Joe Root and being demoted to third, while Smith is now at his lowest ranking since 2014 in sixth.
There have also been suggestions Broad has got inside Labuschagne’s head, after twice having him caught behind with outswingers in the series opener.
Labuschagne made a point to downplay those suggestions this week, while also altering his technique to rid of the shuffle across the crease he used at Edgbaston.
(Photo by Cameron Spencer/Getty Images)
It comes after Broad publicly trumpeted his new outswinger in the lead up to the series, making no secret of the fact he developed it with Smith and Labuschagne in mind.
But for all Broad’s success and the vocal nature of England in the past week, captain Ben Stokes is not ready to declare his strike-weapon seamer has landed a psychological blow.
“Cricket’s a fickle game sometimes. He was the No.1 batter in the world then Broady nicks him off twice,” Stokes said.
“Players like that don’t miss out too often.
“Broady produced two unbelievable deliveries and it’s always great to see the back of Marnus Labuschagne and Steven Smith early but quality players always find a way to bounce back.
“We won’t be reading too much into it but it’s nice knowing there might be something there for Marnus.”
Australia are also banking on the pair returning to their normal run-scoring feats.
The duo have batted every day available to them in the lead up to Wednesday’s Test, returning to the nets on Saturday alongside reserve members of the squad.
Smith made his debut at Lord’s in 2010 and has averaged 54.42 at the famous ground, while it was also the scene of Labuschagne’s return to the side as a concussion substitute in 2019.
“History would suggest that Marnus and Smithy rarely miss out,” captain Pat Cummins said.
“I am expecting a big week from them. Same from the other guys who maybe didn’t have their best week.
“I don’t think we played a complete game last week by a long shot.
“That’s one of the most pleasing things is we weren’t at our best, but still managed to get over the line.”
Strauss says cricket must learn from racism scandal
Former England skipper Andrew Strauss has described the damning report into discrimination in cricket as an “awakening” for the sport and urged those in power to offer more than “lip service” in response.
The long-awaited Independent Commission for Equity in Cricket report found racism was entrenched in the sport, that women routinely encountered sexism and misogyny and that little or no action has been taken to address class barriers within the sport.
The ICEC report describes the sport in England and Wales as “elitist and exclusionary”.
Strauss has spent much of his career in influential positions at the England and Wales Cricket Board, from England captain, to director of men’s cricket and latterly strategic adviser to the board, but left the organisation earlier this year.
“This is a real time of awakening for the game of cricket,” he said at an event for the Ruth Strauss Foundation.
“You have to move forward as a sport. The clear takeaway is the game has to do better, has to move forward and not be defensive.
“We have to make sure anyone who wants to play cricket feels included, welcomed and appreciated. If we get to that stage the game of cricket will be in a much healthier place.
“I was lucky enough to play in inclusive teams and I know how powerful that can be.
“What the report is obviously showing is we haven’t done well enough traditionally.
“It’s an important moment for the game to embrace this, learn the lesson, don’t pay lip service to it and make sure what we see at the back end is actually change.”
The ECB issued an unreserved apology for the failings highlighted in the report and to the victims of discrimination in cricket, and will work over the next three months on a package of reforms based on the 44 recommendations within the report.
Richard Gould, the ECB chief executive, said: “It is an existential issue for the sport. This is a report that the ECB specifically asked for two-and-a-half years ago, and deliberately did not set narrow parameters.
“This report is a seminal moment for us. It helps us to fully understand the scope of the issues within the game, it allows us to understand the apologies that we quite rightly make to those people that suffered discrimination.
“We are determined to be able to act on this report and deliver on its intent in the coming months.
“This report will contain lots of information which will come as a shock to many and many people will be disappointed by.
“But there’s also a huge amount of determination throughout the game, throughout the country, to make sure that cricket can deliver and in only a way that cricket can.”
England captain Ben Stokes, speaking ahead of Wednesday’s second Test at Lord’s, started his pre-match press conference with a statement.
“To the people in the game who have been made to feel unwelcome, I am extremely sorry. Cricket needs to celebrate diversity on all fronts because without it, it would not be the game it is today.
“I have been an England player since 2011 and feel fortunate to be a part of some very diverse teams. We must go further and be inclusive and more diverse because the game I love should be enjoyed without fear of discrimination.
“I am Ben Stokes, born in New Zealand, a state school education pupil who dropped out of school at 16 with one GSCE. Now I am England captain. It is clear the game has much more to do and as players we want to be part of that.”
with AAP
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