Australia drops Labuschagne, Smith out injured for cricket test series opener in the West Indies

BRIDGETOWN, Barbados (AP) — Marnus Labuschagne has been dropped and injured Steve Smith has been ruled out of the Australia lineup for next week's series-opening cricket test against the West Indies.
Cricket Australia on Friday said Smith would miss the opening match of the three-test seies because of a finger injury sustained in the World Test Championship final loss to South Africa last weekend at Lord's. He is expected to be fit for the second test against the West Indies.
Chief selector George Bailey said teenage opener Sam Konstas and wicketkeeper-batter Josh Inglis would replace Smith and Marnus Labuschagne.
He said Smith needed more time for a wound to heal and he'd be reassessed after an another week.
'We have made the decision to give Josh and Sam the opportunity to replace Steve and Marnus,' Bailey said. 'We are excited to see them get the chance to further their fledgling test careers.'
The 19-year-old Konstas has only played two tests, bursting onto the scene with an almost run-a-ball 60 against India in the Boxing Day test in Melbourne last December.
The 30-year-old Inglis has played mostly short-form cricket for Australia, playing his only two test matches to date in the series win in Sri Lanka in February, where he scored a century on debut.
'In his only opportunity in test cricket to date, Josh was outstanding in Sri Lanka, showing great intent and ability to put pressure on the opposition,' Bailey said.
Labuschange averages 46.19 in 104 test innings, including 11 centuries and 23 half-centuries, but has struggled for form in recent series. He hasn't scored a test hundred since the 2023 Ashes series in Manchester and hasn't scored above 26 in his most recent four test matches. Moved up to open in the WTC final against South Africa, he got starts but was out for 17 and 22.
'Marnus at his best can be a really important member of this team. He understands his output hasn't been at the level we, or he, expects,' Bailey said. 'We will continue working with him on the areas of his game we feel he needs to rediscover.'
The batting order and starting XI will be determined closer to the start of the test next Wednedsay. The second test is scheduled to start July 3.
___
AP cricket: https://apnews.com/hub/cricket

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Learn with AIFact CheckingText to SpeechAI Summary

Related Articles

CNET

an hour ago

• CNET

How to Watch England vs. India From Anywhere for Free: Livestream 1st Test Cricket

Ben Stokes' England get their five-match contest against a new-look India team underway with an intriguing first Test at Headingley today. Below, we'll outline the best live TV streaming services to watch all the action from the 1st Test as it happens, wherever you are in the world. We'll also explain how to use a VPN if the match isn't available where you are, along with a full match list. The hosts will aim to continue India's winless Test series streak on English soil, which dates back to 2007. India, meanwhile, will begin life without Rohit Sharma following the legendary captain's retirement. 25-year-old Shubman Gill, the No. 1 one-day batter in the world, is set to skipper for the first time in an international Test match. The 1st Test between England and India takes place between Friday, June 20, and Tuesday, June 24, at Headingley Cricket Ground in Leeds. The first ball is set to be played at 11 a.m. BST local time in the UK each day, making it a 3:30 p.m. IST start in India. That's 6 a.m. ET or 3 a.m. PT in the US and Canada, while for Australian cricket fans it's an 8 p.m. AEST start. England captain Ben Stokes will be hoping his side can maintain their excellent recent red ball record at Headingley, having won their last five Test matches at the West Yorkshire to watch England vs. India 1st Test online from anywhere using a VPN If you're traveling abroad and want to keep up with all the cricket action while away from home, a VPN can help enhance your privacy and security when streaming. It encrypts your traffic and prevents your internet service provider from throttling your speeds. A VPN can also be helpful when connecting to public Wi-Fi networks while traveling, adding an extra layer of protection for your devices and logins. VPNs are legal in many countries, including the US and Canada, and can be used for legitimate purposes such as improving online privacy and security. However, some streaming services may have policies restricting VPN use to access region-specific content. If you're considering a VPN for streaming, check the platform's terms of service to ensure compliance. If you choose to use a VPN, follow the provider's installation instructions, ensuring you're connected securely and in compliance with applicable laws and service agreements. Some streaming platforms may block access when a VPN is detected, so verifying if your streaming subscription allows VPN use is crucial. James Martin/CNET ExpressVPN Best VPN for streaming Price $13 per month, $100 for the first 15 months (then $117 per year) or $140 for the first 28 months (then $150 per year) Latest Tests No DNS leaks detected, 18% speed loss in 2025 tests Network 3,000 plus servers in 105 countries Jurisdiction British Virgin Islands ExpressVPN is our current best VPN pick for people who want a reliable and safe VPN that works on a variety of devices. It's normally $13 a month, but if you sign up for an annual subscription for $100, you'll get three months free and save 49%. That's the equivalent of $6.67 a month. Note that ExpressVPN offers a 30-day money-back guarantee. 61% off with 2yr plan (+4 free months) Livestream England vs. India in the US and Canada This Test series is being broadcast live in North America on cricket-streaming service Willow TV. Livestream the 1st Test in India This Test series is being televised on Sony Sports Ten 1 and Sony Sports Ten 5 linear channels in India, and can be livestreamed via JioHotstar. Watch England vs. India in the UK Live coverage of this summer Test series final is exclusive to Sky Sports in the UK, with all games shown live on its Sky Sports cricket channel. If you already have Sky Sports as part of your TV package, you can stream the tournament via its Sky Go app, but cord-cutters will want to set up a Now account and a Now Sports membership to stream the action. Stream England vs. India for free around the world Scores of countries around the world can watch this Test series live and for free via the International Cricket Council's very own streaming service ICC TV. A full list of which countries can access the free livestream can be found here. Livestream England vs. India in South Africa In South Africa, this Test series is being shown on SuperSport. If you can't watch on your TV, you can also watch via the network's streaming service for PC and Mac, as well as via SuperSport's mobile app. Stream England vs. India in Australia Cricket fans Down Under can watch the action from Headingley on Foxtel as well as its sister streaming service Kayo Sports. Kayo Sports Kayo Sports Watch the England vs. India Test series in Australia for AU$25 A Kayo Sports subscription starts at AU$25 a month and lets you stream on one screen, while its Premium tier costs AU$40 a month for simultaneous viewing on up to three devices. The service gives you access to a wide range of sports, including F1, NRL, NFL, NHL and MLB, and there are no lock-in contracts. Better still, if you're a new customer, you can take advantage of a one-week Kayo Sports free trial. See at Kayo Sports Stream England vs. India in New Zealand Pay TV broadcaster Sky Sport has broadcast rights to show the series live in New Zealand. Quick tips for streaming the England vs. India Test series using a VPN

Yahoo

4 hours ago

• Yahoo

The home of the British and Irish Lions on the BBC Sport website

You have come to the right place. This page is where you will find all the best of BBC Sport's coverage of the Lions' tour of Australia, with the latest news, opinion, analysis and gossip from inside the camp. Advertisement Our team of journalists are on the ground, following the team from Dublin to Perth and beyond as they forge on towards a momental three-Test series against the Wallabies. There will be interviews, podcasts, team news, behind-the-scenes pictures and live text coverage of every match. And you can keep across it all. Just hit the 'follow' button on website or app to add it to your 'MySport' feed or tap the bell on the BBC Sport app to be served up alerts with all the latest.

New York Times

5 hours ago

• New York Times

Test cricket explained in 60 seconds

Test cricket can be a daunting spectacle for the unfamiliar: a vast field, two sets of wickets and up to five days of play in a single match. But it is also beautiful; a prolonged battle unlike anything else in world sport. So as part of The Athletic's new cricket coverage, which we launched this week, we thought it might be useful for the uninitiated if we put together this explainer on exactly how Test cricket works. If you want to read the cricket articles we have published so far, including our analysis ahead of this summer's Test series between England and India, click here. Strap yourself in. This could take a while, which is exactly what Test cricket is about — patience. Test matches are the traditional and longest form of the sport and are so called because it is considered the ultimate test of skill and endurance in cricket. Tests are played by international teams of 11 players over up to five days. Each team is scheduled to bat — known as an innings, just like in baseball — and bowl twice per game. First there is a coin toss, then the captain who wins the toss decides between volunteering their team to bat first and making the opposition do so, with their choice based on factors such as the climatic conditions, the weather forecast for the days ahead, the state of the pitch and the players at their disposal. A Test cricket captain has to be a mix of a meteorologist, an agronomist and a futurologist. An innings is over when either 10 of the batting team's 11 players are out (there must always be two batters on the pitch — the strip of ground, 22 yards long, that has the wickets, also known as stumps, at either end) or that team's captain decides to 'declare', which means they are confident they have scored enough runs already with players still to take their turns and wants to put the opposition in to bat, so his bowlers can put them under pressure. Each team has 11 players made up of specialist batters and bowlers plus all-rounders (players that can bat and bowl proficiently, or bat and be the wicket-keeper, the player from the bowling team stationed immediately behind the stumps). When batting, the two players most technically skilled at this aspect of the game take a team's first turns. They are known as the openers, because they are opening the innings. As batters are dismissed, they are followed by others, first those known as the top order, then the all-rounders in the middle, with the bowlers — or tailenders — batting last. Each day's play, weather permitting, lasts about seven hours and is divided into three sessions — the morning from an 11am start, the afternoon following a 40-minute lunch break and the evening, which comes after the 20-minute 'tea interval' (as in 'afternoon tea', though these days the professional teams don't just drink tea and eat sandwiches in that break, although that is still how it works at village cricket clubs all across Britain). The bowling team must perform an allotted amount of overs (an over is a set of six deliveries, from the same end of the pitch) or their captain could be fined for slow play. The winners are the team to have scored the most runs in total. That might be after both sides have batted their two full innings, but it can be after only one of them has done that twice — if they scored fewer runs in their two innings than the other side managed in one. Once the team batting last surpasses the combined total of their opponents' two innings, they are described as having won by how many batters they still have who are not out in that second innings — i.e., if they have five batters left, they have won by five wickets. Advertisement If they fail to surpass the combined total, the other team is described as having won by how many runs the opposition has fallen short by. For example, if the team batting last need to score 350 to surpass the other lot's total but only have 274 when their last batter is out, the side then bowling win by 76 runs. Incredibly, after almost a week of play, there can still be a draw, yes. Ultimately, to win, a team must bowl the opposition out twice. If, at the end of the designated number of overs on the last of the five days, one of the teams are still batting and have players left in the order, the match is declared a draw, regardless of whether one side has scored more runs. The weather can also have a big impact on whether a game ends in a draw, with hours or whole days lost to rain — not so rare an occurrence during England's sometimes inclement summers.