Marnus Labuschagne says the fallout from Jonny Bairstow’s controversial Lord’s dismissal is “dead and buried” in the minds of the Australians as they meet England for the first time since the Ashes.
In-depth recounts of the bizarre run-out effected by Australian keeper Alex Carey during the second Test have surfaced in recent weeks, including an extensive interview with retired England star Stuart Broad, who was in the thick of the controversy, but Labuschagne said the heat from the incident had long departed.
Ahead of Saturday’s clash with the old enemy in Gujarat, Labuschagne said Australia’s focus was firmly on taking care of an opponent viewed as highly dangerous due to a dire run of form.
“I can’t imagine anything’s gonna come up with Jonny (Bairstow). It’s dead and buried, something that we don’t really talk about, we don’t discuss,” he said.
“I don’t think anyone’s view or thoughts have changed on the decision on what happened and we just move on.
“I know Jonny came out and spoke about it a few months ago but … we prerecord stuff and then it comes out two months later so it feels like it’s topical again now, but that conversation was had months and months ago … as players, it’s happened … I think everyone’s moved on.”
Labuschagne said it was a “shock” that England found itself on the brink of elimination from the semi-final stage after only managing a solitary win in six matches.
“Obviously, England, just being horribly out of form – I don’t really think there’s much else,” he said.
“But one thing that does mean is they’re dangerous. If there’s ever a team that’s dangerous when they’re down and out, it’s England.
“Let’s not get sucked into how they’re performing. They’re a good team, they’re good individual players and we need to be at our best.”
With Travis Head’s return from injury forcing a batting reshuffle, Labuschagne’s middle-order spot may have come under threat in Gujarat but for Glenn Maxwell’s freak golf course injury on Wednesday.
Labuschagne said he was continuing to work on starting his innings quickly but had confidence from his consistent run-scoring form since his return to the ODI side in South Africa in September.
“You know, everyone does it in their own way. I’m not Mitch Marsh, but that doesn’t mean I can’t strike at 130, 140 in my own manner,” he said.
“And I think that’s what I’ve really taken on-board and making sure that I just go out there and trust my shots in my game against spin and then against pace.
“I’ve done that well over the last 13 games, and then the second thing is just continuing to get better at reading those situations when I need to play a certain role.”
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