Neil D'Costa, Marnus Labuschagne's longtime mentor, advised him against overtraining as he appears to be struggling with his form now. Labuschagne worked hard in a nets session after Australia lost the first Test match against India by 295 runs at Perth's Optus Stadium. Prior to joining the team for the forthcoming pink-ball Test in Adelaide, he is also anticipated to train alone.
Labuschagne overtook Joe Root as the number 1 Test batter back in December 2022. However, at the moment, the right-handed batter is struggling. Labuschagne's best score in 2024 was 90 against New Zealand in Christchurch, and he has only amassed 245 runs at an average of 24.50 from six Test matches.
Marnus Labuschagne's mentor gives him advice
"I'd probably just half what he usually does. Just try and clear it up a bit. Keep working on reacting more, not having such rigid plans. Every batter goes through this. Almost everyone around 30 years old, don't know why it's that number, seems to have this glitch. He's a guy we all know, he loves playing cricket. He never leaves a stone unturned. He's super fit. Does he overthink things? I don't know, possibly everyone does," D'Costa told ESPNcricinfo.
In an attempt to get back to his best, Labuschagne's mentor advised the Australian batter to learn from Virat Kohli rather than striving too hard. In the second innings of the Perth Test, Kohli, who was not playing at his best, found his rhythm with an incredible hundred.
"When someone gets to the stage where they are the No. 1 player in the world, they are going to become a target. He couldn't keep going. He'd be averaging 80. At some stage, don't want to say it had to happen...it happens to a lot of players. They try a bit too hard and like [Virat] Kohli you have to keep trusting yourself, trusting your processes, trust what you do. Go back and find a way the next day,” he added.
Labuschagne scored just two runs off fifty-two deliveries in the Perth Test before being dismissed by Mohammed Siraj. The person who took his wicket in the second innings was Jasprit Bumrah. Starting on December 6, Labuschagne will try to make apologies in the Adelaide Test.
