Test No.3’s extraordinary appetite for the game laid bare having kept playing with major injury for past month
Marnus Labuschagne has been playing with a broken right thumb for the past month, with the Test No.3 revealing he suffered the injury in the final Ashes Test against England.
As several of his international teammates take extended time off following the taxing five-Test home series, Labuschagne’s extraordinary appetite for the game has been underscored by his insistence at playing through pain in domestic cricket in the months after the men’s international season concluded.
Implying medical staff might have suggested otherwise, Labuschagne has soldiered on for the Brisbane Heat and Queensland following Australia’s 4-1 Ashes triumph.
The right-hander was on 25 in Australia’s first innings on day two of the Sydney Test when he was struck by a lifting Matthew Potts delivery. Despite wincing in pain, he kept batting before later being dismissed by Ben Stokes two short of a half-century. He then bowled three overs two days later and added 37 in his side’s tense fourth-innings chase before being run out.
He said an initial X-ray cleared him of damage but a subsequent MRI showed tendon and ligament damage. Labuschagne has since batted and fielded with custom-made guards to protect the injury, while he is currently wearing a bigger moulded brace when not playing.
He admits the injury affects how he grips his bat with his bottom hand.
“It did a bit of damage, and I’m just sort of managing it as well as we can while we’re playing,” the 31-year-old told reporters at stumps on day two of the Bulls’ Sheffield Shield match against Victoria at the MCG.
“The boundaries of me playing is I have to bat with a guard on and we have to strap it and stuff like that. So there’s some give and take there, just to make sure that we don’t do any more damage to it.
“Hopefully over time, being in this brace for eight weeks allows it to heal and reattach the ligaments and tendons.
“It’s just a few tendons on the inside of the thumb here, and then the ligaments on top (are) ruptured … a high-grade tear of the tendon, and then a little bit of bone came off with the tendon.”
Labuschagne threw himself into playing for the Brisbane Heat in their title push for their final three BBL games of the season. He scored 5 and 18 in two hits in that competition, and then fell for 4 to an athletic catch in Tuesday’s one-dayer against the Vics.
In this ongoing Shield contest in which he is captaining Queensland, he scored 10 in the first innings before getting out hooking for 41 on Friday, the latter knock lasting 89 balls to mark his longest innings since the Ashes.
The Bulls presently sit second on both the Shield and One-Day Cup standings, with Labuschagne indicating the lure of silverware was a driving factor for him. His side lost last season’s Shield final to South Australia.
“I love playing for Queensland, I love playing the game,” he said. “We’re in a position where we can potentially win both (Shield and One-Day Cup) competitions.
“So it felt like it was an opportunity to just see if we can manage it, see if we manage the pain and keep playing.
“I’m not going to play the game forever, so while I’m here, I want to enjoy it and I want to play … being able to win a Shield is enough motivation for me to keep pushing and playing, no matter the circumstances.”
Labuschagne is also expected to return to county side Glamorgan at the end of the Australian season, but will wait until his hand is fully healed before joining the club. He should then be in no doubt for Australia’s next Test assignment against Bangladesh in August.
He said playing for Queensland has also offered him the opportunity to fix some technical glitches from the Ashes, in which he scored 259 runs at 29 after winning his spot back following a dominant start to the domestic summer.
“There’s a few things I wanted to address, a few different changes in technique to get things right,” Labuschagne said.
“I was very disappointed with that first innings (against Victoria), that was just a little bit of a technique thing that I sorted out during the lunch break after I got out.
“Today was working really nicely, lining the ball up really well, getting my head in a really nice position. It was a disappointing way to get out there with what was on the line there for us to be able to push and get a really nice lead.
“But keep working, keep grinding, and make sure that I get my game in a place where the next opportunity I get for Australia, I’m getting that big score.”
Sheffield Shield 2025-26 standings
Team
Matches played
M
Wins
W
Losses
L
Drawn
D
No results
N/R
Deductions
Ded.
Batting Bonus
Bat
Bowling Bonus
Bowl
Total points
PTS
1
VIC
6
5
1
0
0
0
5.87
5.3
41.17
2
QLD
6
2
2
2
0
0
8.18
4.2
26.38
3
SA
6
2
2
2
0
0
4.69
5.6
24.29
4
NSW
6
2
3
1
0
0
4.65
4.9
22.55
5
TAS
6
2
3
1
0
2
3.34
5
19.34
6
WA
6
1
3
2
0
0
1.61
5.5
15.11
Legend
M: Matches played
W: Wins
L: Losses
D: Drawn
N/R: No results
Ded.: Deductions
Bat: Batting Bonus
Bowl: Bowling Bonus
PTS: Total points
