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Marnus Labuschagne may not be ready for Test cricket just yet, as his first-class batting record suggests, but he has great potential as a batting all-rounder thanks to his accurate leg spin.
Labuschagne has now taken wickets in each of Pakistan’s three innings this series. He was pivotal yesterday, snaring 3-45 as the hosts were bowled out for 282 on day one of the second Test, in Abu Dhabi.
Despite barely having bowled in first-class cricket – he’d taken only 12 wickets from 36 matches – Labuschagne has threatened in each of his spells in the UAE.
What’s more, three of his wickets have been top-six batsmen, yesterday he got wicketkeeper-batsman Sarfraz Ahmed on 94, and the other was dangerous bowling all-rounder Bilal Asif.
Incredibly, he has taken five wickets at 16 in this series, compared to specialist spinner Jon Holland’s haul of four at 63.
What is most encouraging about Labuschagne is not his results with the ball but how he has achieved them. Each of his five wickets have come from genuinely good deliveries, rather than fortuitous dismissals from loose offerings, as can often be the case with wrist spinners.
Marnus Labuschagne of Australia (Photo by Ryan Pierse/Getty Images)
Unusually for a part-time wrist spinner, Labuschagne bowls few bad balls. Most occasional leggies are capable of sending down wicket-taking deliveries but mix them up with a generous helping of boundary balls.
Steve Smith is a perfect example. In any given over, the former Australian captain produces several swerving, dipping deliveries of which a specialist leg-spinner would be proud.
The problem, and the reason Smith can only be used sparingly, is that each of his overs typically also includes at least one or two half-trackers or full tosses.
Smith bleeds runs so badly – his Test economy rate is 4.18 runs per over – that he swiftly releases any pressure built up by the frontline bowlers. As such, he can only be used as a last resort, when a skipper is desperate for a wicket.
Not so Labuschagne. The 24-year-old can be trusted to bowl at crucial junctures, just as he did yesterday when debutant Fakhar Zaman (94) and captain Sarfraz (94) were threatening to take the game away with a 147-run stand.
In his second over, Labuschagne had a huge LBW shout against Fakhar turned down, only to trap him in front three balls later. He then beat the edges of Sarfraz and Bilal several times each before eventually earning a catch for wicketkeeper Tim Paine when he defeated Bilal in the flight.
Aussie wicketkeeper Tim Paine (AAP Image/Dave Hunt)
Then, in the seventh over of a fantastic spell, Labuschagne got a leg break to dip sharply on Sarfraz, who looked to loft it down the ground but could not get to the pitch of the ball and instead skied it to cover. It was a phenomenal spell from a cricketer who was picked as a specialist batsman.
Labuschagne is fortunate to be in the Test team considering his modest first-class record – 2199 runs at 34, with only four tons.
He is probably still a year or two away from being ready to play as a frontline Test batsman. But you can now be sure he will get a lot more overs when he returns to the Sheffield Shield.
With the experience of bowling more regularly, he could become the kind of player Australia have long sought – a genuine top-six batsman who also challenges the opposition with the ball. While Labuschagne has a long way to go, he has immense potential with the ball.
Australia’s batsmen will be wary of the amount of turn gained yesterday by Labuschagne and Nathan Lyon, who produced a remarkable spell in the first session, snaring 4-0.
Pakistan landed a dizzying blow before stumps when first-Test hero Usman Khawaja was caught down the leg side from the bowling of pace star Mohammad Abbas. The gun seamer then grabbed a second, with nightwatchman Peter Siddle out LBW, leaving Australia 2-20 at stumps.
Regardless of those late wickets, it was a good day for Australia after they suffered the major disadvantage of losing the toss and being asked to bat last on a pitch which was turning from the first session.
With Khawaja gone, it will be up to the likes of the Marsh brothers to step up with the bat if Australia are to gain a first innings lead. Without a lead of some sort, Australia will be in a vulnerable position on a surface which looks likely to assist the spinners greatly as the Test wears on.