Marnus Labuschagne has been dropped, and injured star Steve Smith has been ruled out of Australia’s squad for the opening match of their upcoming three-Test series against the West Indies, Cricket Australia confirmed on Friday.
Smith will miss the first Test due to a finger injury sustained during Australia’s World Test Championship (WTC) final defeat to South Africa last weekend at Lord’s. While his recovery is progressing, he has not yet healed enough to return. Cricket Australia expects him to be fit in time for the second Test, set to begin on July 3.
Chief selector George Bailey announced that teenager Sam Konstas and wicketkeeper-batter Josh Inglis would replace Smith and Labuschagne in the squad. Bailey explained that Smith required another week for his wound to heal and would be reassessed afterward.
“We have made the decision to give Josh and Sam the opportunity to replace Steve and Marnus,” said Bailey. “We are excited to see them get the chance to further their fledgling Test careers.”
Nineteen-year-old Konstas has only two Test caps to his name but made a strong impression with a brisk 60 off nearly as many balls during last December’s Boxing Day Test against India in Melbourne.
Josh Inglis, 30, has primarily represented Australia in limited-overs formats but impressed in his only Test series to date — against Sri Lanka in February — scoring a century on debut and showing promise.
“In his only opportunity in Test cricket to date, Josh was outstanding in Sri Lanka, showing great intent and ability to put pressure on the opposition,” Bailey noted.
Labuschagne, who averages 46.19 across 104 Test innings with 11 centuries and 23 fifties, has been out of form in recent series. He has not reached a hundred since the 2023 Ashes Test in Manchester and has failed to score above 26 in his last four Test innings. Promoted to open in the WTC final against South Africa, he made modest starts but was dismissed for 17 and 22.
“Marnus at his best can be a really important member of this team,” said Bailey. “He understands his output hasn’t been at the level we, or he, expects. We will continue working with him on the areas of his game we feel he needs to rediscover.”
The final playing XI and batting lineup for the first Test will be confirmed closer to the match, which begins next Wednesday.
Source: AP
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