Following Bangladesh’s nine-wicket victory over Australia in the first Test at Darwin, Australia will play Bangladesh in the second Test at Mackay on Saturday, August 22, 2026. Despite only scoring 1 and 31 in the first Test, Marnus Labuschagne is staying at number three as Australia attempts to tie the series.
Despite his inconsistent performance, Australian captain Pat Cummins supported middle-order batsman Marnus Labuschagne ahead of the second Test match against Bangladesh in Mackay.
After being dismissed for 31 in the second innings, Labuschagne’s position was called into question. Prior to this, he had a prolonged period of poor form that led to his ouster following the World Test Championship final before making a comeback for the Ashes.
Citing Labuschagne’s track record and recent training results, Australia skipper Pat Cummins has encouraged the batsman to go back to his best at Mackay. Despite a poor run of form spanning more than two years, Cummins voiced faith that the middle-order batsman can still perform at the elite level.
According to reports, Cummins said, “I was going to say the runs are on the board, um, not sure that’s the right term, but he’s been number one bat in the world, or close to. He’s scored thousands of Test runs, so we know it’s in him.”
Before the Mackay Test, Cummins noted that Labuschagne had demonstrated excellent form in training and match simulations. The skipper of Australia, who has practiced bowling against Labuschagne, mentioned how challenging it is to get rid of a batter who is performing at their best.
He further added, “I know it’s only training and centre wickets and match simulations, but I thought he’s been as sharp as he has for a long time. That’s me bowling at him and getting that feedback. Looks like he’s really, you know, getting himself back into the ball, putting pressure back on the bowler, making it really difficult to kind of get out. As a bowler, it feels like the margins are really small when someone like Marnus or Steve is kind of at their best form, and you know, I’ve felt that the last couple of months.”
Cummins concluded his case by stressing the need for patience rather than panic and asserting that the failure of the previous week was a small setback rather than a cause for radical change.
