Marnus Labuschagne has kept his place in Australia’s Test squad for the upcoming three match series in South Africa despite his long struggle for runs.
Australia named a 16 man squad for the tour. Cooper Connolly, Michael Neser and Matthew Kuhnemann have also earned places in the squad.
The other 13 players were all part of Australia’s last Test against Bangladesh in Mackay.
Labuschagne has faced growing pressure over his place at No. 3. He has averaged only 24.69 in his last 43 Test innings and has not scored a century since July 2023.
His recent series against Bangladesh did little to ease those concerns.
Labuschagne scored 1, 31 and 4 in his three innings against Bangladesh.
He had also lost his place in Australia’s ODI squad for the tours of Zimbabwe and South Africa before the Test series.
However, the selectors have decided to keep faith in the experienced batter for the South Africa Tests.
Australia chair of selectors George Bailey admitted they want more runs from Labuschagne but backed him to make an impact.
“We’re not shying away from the fact that we’d like some more runs from Marn. That’s clear,” Bailey said.
“But we’re also confident that he can still make a positive contribution to that squad.”
