MELBOURNE: Marnus Labuschagne is devoting less time to perfecting his technique and is instead taking a more relaxed approach to the game as he bids to reclaim his Test spot for the Ashes series against England, the Australia batter said on Wednesday.

The former top-ranked batter played his 58th Test in the World Test Championship final against eventual winners South Africa in June before Australia dropped him for the subsequent three-Test series in West Indies.

He played the 50-overs home series against South Africa last month but is keen to get back to the Australia side for the Ashes opener in Perth from Nov 21.

“My technique, over time, hasn’t been where I wanted it to be, and probably there’s been a little bit too much time and focus going into trying to get that right, rather than just playing with what I’ve got,” he told a Cricket Australia website.

“But it’s been a nice time to reset, be able to recalibrate and go, ‘Okay I missed that West Indies series, how am I going to get myself ready to play the Ashes?’ That’s obviously the ultimate goal to be back in that team come the first Test.”

The 31-year-old managed only one century in 53 innings before losing his place in the Test side. All-rounder Cameron Green would have to move down the order if Labuschagne comes back into his favoured number three spot.

“Two years ago I was one of the best batters in the world,” Labuschagne said. “You know that it’s there and you know you’ve just got to go back to the [drawing] board and find that consistency, that mental clarity, to go out there and perform.”

Published in Dawn, September 4th, 2025