Marnus Labuschagne axed as Sam Konstas returns for Australia in first West Indies Test

  • Konstas expected to open; Josh Inglis also comes into side

  • Steve Smith to miss out in Barbados due to dislocated finger

Australia’s selectors have made their biggest call in recent memory, dropping Marnus Labuschagne from the top order and replacing him with Sam Konstas. Chief selector George Bailey confirmed on Friday that Labuschagne would miss next week’s first Test against the West Indies.

Steve Smith will also miss the match as he recovers from his dislocated finger, with medical staff to assess him ahead of the second Test. Josh Inglis will come into the XI, while it is expected Konstas will open, but Australia will unveil their batting order and bowling attack closer to the start of the first Test next Wednesday.

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Ben Stokes calls on England to adapt better ‘when we’re up against the wall’

  • Test captain identifies weakness ahead of India series

  • He reveals Jofra Archer is pestering him for a Test call

Ben Stokes may have described England’s recent lack of Test action as “a bit odd” but playing just one game in the past six months has given the side space to reconsider their approach before the series against India.

Stokes has won 23 of his 33 games in charge while losing 12 and insisted: “I don’t think it’s arrogant to say that we’ve been good over the last three years.” But with England’s next 10 Tests coming against either India – starting at Headingley on Friday – or ­Australia they have prepared for potential adversity.

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When India won at Headingley for the first time and left England in despair

Mike Gatting took over from David Gower as captain before the Test at Headingley. It didn’t make much difference

By That 1980s Sports Blog

India will be hoping the Test at Headingley this week goes better than their last visit to the ground in 2021. Dismissed for 78 in the first innings, a defeat inevitably followed for the visitors. It was a far cry from their two previous visits – the victory in 2002 inspired by Rahul Dravid, Sachin Tendulkar and Sourav Ganguly, and their first Test win at the ground in 1986.

England’s defeat at Headingley 39 years ago was a tough one for their fans. As the World Cup in Mexico grabbed the attention of the sporting public, and Boris Becker defended his Wimbledon crown, England’s Test team were plumbing new depths. The glory of the 1985 Ashes series seemed a lifetime ago. That victory had led some to believe that the winter series against the West Indies could be an evenly matched contest between two of the best teams in the world. File that under misplaced confidence. England were crushed 5-0, and the pressure on captain David Gower started to crank up.

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Hail the Prince: Shubman Gill’s India captaincy a prophecy fulfilled but Test doubts remain

After a run of greats at the helm, the tourists’ early promotion of their new leader is an intriguing choice to steady a listing ship

Shubman Gill was a pretty laid-back character when he played for Glamorgan three summers ago. So laid back, in fact, that early on during his time there he parked the brand new Volvo the club had arranged for him and apparently left the keys in the ignition. Sure enough, after training, he returned to find it had been pinched.

Cue panic in the finance department at Sophia Gardens, calls to the insurers and the like. But at least his new teammates had material for some lighthearted mickey-taking. Gill, just turned 23 but already an India star on the rise, had arrived for three September rounds of the County Championship in 2022. Saying hello with 92 on debut in Cardiff, and goodbye with 119 at Hove, it sounds like he fitted in well.

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England opt for Ollie Pope at No 3 over Jacob Bethell for first India Test

  • Vice-captain gets the nod after 171 against Zimbabwe

  • The 21-year-old rising star featured against West Indies

Ollie Pope has retained his England place and will face India in the first Test starting on Friday, the 171 he scored against Zimbabwe last month having proved enough to hold off the emerging challenge of Jacob Bethell.

Bethell’s success in Pope’s No 3 slot during the three-match series in New Zealand over the winter, when he scored a half-century in each Test and averaged 52, appeared to have made the position his to lose.

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