Ahead of the upcoming Ashes, the massive buildup leading to the tournament has got all cricket fans and pundits to keep a closer look on all the players who could leave an impact in the series. In prepartions to the mega series, players like Steve Smith, Ollie Robinson, and Marnus Labuschagne have been playing County Championship to acclimatise themselves withh the conditions.
In a recent county match which saw Sussex take on fourth-placed Glamorgan, Marnus Labuschagne was up against the likes of Steven Smith and Cheteshwar Pujara but couldn’t leave much of a mark as the Australian was dismissed by England bowler Ollie Robinson on the very first ball. The match-up created immediate headlines as the rivalry is being anticipated to play a vital role in the Ashes.
Bowling down the slope at Hove, Robinson aimed to attack Labuschagne’s front pad. He seamed in and bowled full. Robinson blasted off in celebration after hitting his mark, similar to Stuart Broad’s celebration, before taking a quick glance over his shoulder to see if umpire Rob White had raised his finger or not. Although replays indicated that the Decision Review System would not have saved him had it been available, Labuschagne appeared to indicate that the ball might have been little higher to hit the wickets.
Robinson had earlier been the leader of the pack for the England side on many occasions in the absence of James Anderson and Stuart Broad.
The England seamer has been in astonishing form in the County Championship Division Two picking up 19 wickets in just three matches that he has played. Meanwhile, he even registered his career-best figure of 14/177 in the match against Worcestershire, played at Worcester.
Considering his form, Robinson could be seen as a regular in the England side for all the five matches of the Ashes. His apparent improvement in fitness could just be the icing on the cake. Australia, too, would be aware of Robinson’s threat, as Labuschagne might attest. He took 11 wickets at an average of 25.54 despite frequently being out of shape and lacking in pace; however, now being better than ever before, to strengthen England’s pace attack.