Steven Smith has revealed that Marnus Labuschagne told him before the season that he would be back in the Test side by the start of the Ashes.
Though that decision has yet to be rubberstamped by the Australia selectors, Labuschagne is all-but certain to earn a recall having made two Sheffield Shield centuries in two matches - and four hundreds in five innings across the early domestic season - in a prolific return to form after being dropped in the West Indies earlier this year.
"I sent him a message a couple of days ago saying how proud I was of him," Smith said. "He's just gone back and he's got his fourth hundred in five hits. It's a pretty big statement. He said to me at the start of the summer, he goes, 'I'll be in that Test team come the first [Ashes] Test'. He's backed up his words, probably. He's obviously not selected yet, [but] he's done a lot of things right."
During the first ODI against India, Labuschagne spoke about some of his struggles having come from getting "too deep" into his technique and "trying to be too perfect", which echoes advice Smith had given him.
"We've all been there [dropped] at some point in our careers and it's difficult to hear it," Smith said. "But I think he knew he probably wasn't batting as well as he had been over probably four years ago when he was scoring a mountain of runs.
"I think my advice to him was 'stop thinking so technically, just go and play the game; watch the ball and react'. I think he's been doing that really beautifully and he's played so nicely."
While Labuschagne's return looks certain, a significant question remains about where he bats in the order amid the ongoing debate around who opens alongside Usman Khawaja with Sam Konstas' challenges continuing. Labuschagne was promoted to the top in the World Test Championship final against South Africa and there remains a realistic chance he will be asked to do it again.
A large part of the final decision may revolve around how many overs the selectors are confident in Cameron Green getting through and whether Beau Webster's bowling is also required.
"He can open, as we saw in the Test championship final," Smith said. "He can bat three. He's versatile. We'll see where it all stands when the team gets picked. I mean, it's not too different to batting three, to be honest. He could be in first ball. So, it's essentially the same thing.
"I don't think he needs to change anything if that's the case. Just play the game, play how he has been, and see the ball hit it, and trust his instincts."
Smith, who had a four-Test stint as opener in early 2024 before returning to No. 4 last season where he averaged 53.27 against India and Sri Lanka, may also become part of the batting-order debate over whether he returns to No. 3.
"I'm not too fussed, to be honest," Smith said. "I'm happy kind of wherever. But, yeah, we'll see what happens when the team's picked where we'll talk to the coaches and Patty [Cummins] and see where everyone fits in best, I suppose, and keep it as simple as that."
With regards Konstas, who has made 4, 14, 0 and 53 in his four Shield innings of the season having scored a century for Australia A in India last month, Smith said there was a balance to strike for young players between overloading them with advice and allowing them to problem solve.
"He's obviously going through a bit of a period right now where he's trying to figure out how he wants to play," he said. "I think at times you've got to let these young players figure it out for themselves and find the way that they want to play. I think back to when I was young, I had to figure it out.
"There were people that I could speak to, but ultimately you're the one out in the middle playing. It's your career and you need to figure out how you want to go about it. He's so young, he's got plenty of time to figure out how he wants to go.
"From what I've seen, he's got so much time as a batter when he's facing fast bowling. That's something you can't really teach, so that's a good starting point. Then there's a few things that he has to obviously work on, but he's a bright talent as we've seen and he's got a bright future."