Former Australia captain Michael Clarke has predicted that Marnus Labuschagne is not far away from a big knock. He said after his gritty display against the Indian bowlers in the pink ball Test of the Border-Gavaskar series at the Adelaide Oval. He entered the series amid intense scrutiny and received flak for his dismal set of displays in the first Test in Perth. With a promising record in Adelaide Oval, Labuschagne bounced back with 64 runs off 126 deliveries as well. Former Australia opener David Warner, however, was left unconvinced by his show.

“I’m still not convinced with Marnus. I don’t think that was anywhere near what we know he’s capable of,” Warner said on Fox Sports (via Hindustan Times).

In response, Michael Clarke backed Labuschagne, saying,  “I thought that the way he found a way to get through that first night was exceptional. I don’t think India got their line and length right, like they did in Perth. They were a fraction short, and a fraction wide. But, Marnus deserves a lot of credit. So does McSweeney. I think the way they let the ball go, they held their line in defence,” Clarke said on ESPN’s Around the Wicket show.

“He has not scored as many runs as he would like, so it’s never going to look perfect first up. I think generally, as a batter, if you can scratch yourself to a half-century or a sixty or a seventy, you take that. Because then the next innings is the one where you start to feel a bit more confident, more balls are hitting the middle of the bat. So, don’t be surprised if he walks out in Brisbane and makes a big and important hundred,” Clarke again added.

While criticizing Marnus Labuschagne, Warner also stated that the No.3 batter tends to lose his wicket similarly after being set as well.

“Davey makes a point, he was not at his best, and if he is going to get caught at gully averaging 50 or 60, I’m okay with that,” Clarke concluded.