Labuschagne deeply upset after missing out on West Indies tour: Selector Trevor Hohns

Cricket Australia on Monday named a 23-man preliminary squad for the tour of West Indies. The Aaron Finch-led side will cross swords with the Men in Maroon in five T20Is and three ODIs, starting from July 9. With big names like David Warner, Steve Smith, Pat Cummins and Mitchell Starc in the side, CA has indeed named a potent team. However, the board missed out on few names, including Marnus Labuschagne.

Labuschagne, who has been a cornerstone of Australia’s Test team in the last couple of years, has done reasonably well in his short but impressive ODI career. However, the young batsman will miss the flight to the Caribbean Islands as he’s currently playing County cricket in England. National selector Trevor Hohns revealed Labuschagne was upset after not being part of the group.

Marnus Labuschagne was upset after being left out: Trevor Hohns

“Anyone who knows Marnus understands he would give absolutely anything to play for Australia and he is deeply upset to miss out due to circumstances beyond anyone’s control. We worked through numerous options in conversations with Marnus to find a workable solution but ultimately came to the conclusion it was more practical for him to remain in the UK,” Hohns said in a statement.

Labuschagne is currently playing for Glamorgan, and he will continue his county stint in the coming months. While Australia lock horns with West Indies, Labuschagne will play for his county side in the Vitality T20 Blast. Trevor Hohns further admitted that Labuschagne would have comfortably walked into the ODI squad had the circumstances been normal.

“Had we not been in the middle of a global pandemic, Marnus would be on this tour as a well-established member and important part of the one-day side. It’s an unfortunate circumstance of the many challenges the world is facing right now. As it stands, Marnus has the opportunity to continue in county cricket and T20 games with Glamorgan,” Hohns asserted.

Meanwhile, the upcoming series will be crucial for Australia, with the ICC T20 World Cup 2021 slated to take place later this year in India. Aaron Finch’s men indeed have enough time to try different combinations with five T20Is being played in the series. However, they can’t afford to be complacent against the defending T20 World Cup champions.