Former batsman Simon Katich believes some Australian players’ performance in the second innings of the ongoing second Test against South Africa at Gqeberha can decide whether or not they will be selected again.
After being asked to follow on, the Aussies were 156/4, trailing the Proteas by 170 runs at the end of the fourth day. Marnus Labuschagne, who has been struggling for some time now, once again disappointed with 39. He often gets a good start, but big runs have eluded the batter in recent years. Nic Maddinson, who stayed in the playing XI amid criticism, scored 0 and 8 in the second Test. All-rounder Beau Webster has not been of much use either.
Also Read: Temba Bavuma, captaincy and the making of a batting star
Katich took a dig at Labuschagne, who played a careless shot to get out off Simon Harmer, with the score reading 100/1. Travis Head (87 not out) and Labuschagne looked solid before the latter went for a high-risk aerial shot and gave his wicket away.
“There are a number of players playing for their careers in this innings,” Katich said on SEN radio. “Only he knows what was going through his mind when he tried to take Harmer down the ground, against the breeze, when Australia are trying to play for a draw.
“How will the Australian selectors view that dismissal? He’s been given plenty of rope over the past few years, when plenty of others haven’t, but he has,” he added.
Australia head coach Andrew McDonald wasn’t happy with what he saw from Labuschagne either. The 32-year-old batsman, who has not scored a Test ton since July 2023, now finds himself under tremendous pressure. “You saw what we saw,” McDonald said.
‘I feel like I am on repeat’
“For me, the option is there if the ball is in the right area. But in that scenario, there probably are some shots that players would take back. He did a lot of hard work once again. I feel like I am on repeat around the amount of 30s that he has got. That has become a danger period for him. We had a good partnership going and were starting to claw ourselves back into the game, albeit a long way behind.
“When you do that hard work, you’ve got to cash in, and unfortunately, that wasn’t to be the case for Marn. We were disappointed, and he will be too,” the head coach added.
Australia currently lead the three-game series 1-0, having won the first game at Kingsmead by 214 runs. At Gqeberha, just 43 overs could be bowled on the first two days. In light of that, the Proteas deserve a lot of credit for putting themselves into a match-winning position, having first scored 425/9d and then bowled out the visitors for 99 in the first innings. Head and nightwatchman Scott Boland will resume the innings on the fifth and final day of the game today.
Nathan Lyon’s exclusion for this Test wasn’t received well in many quarters, and if the visitors lose at Gqeberha, the Aussie team management will find itself under more pressure.
