Marnus Labuschagne’s coach has slammed Aussie cricket great Mark Waugh for caring more about horse racing gambling than his commentary as he criticized the star batter
- Marnus Labuschagne’s coach Mark Waugh has slammed the obsession with horse racing
- Waugh was critical of the number of times Labuschagne was dropped
- Waugh recently watched the race on his phone while commentating
Marnus Labuschagne’s batting coach Neil D’Costa has slammed Mark Waugh for caring more about horse racing gambling than his cricket commentary after recent criticism of the star batsman.
The world’s no.1-ranked Test batsman hit back at criticism from Fox Sports commentator and cricket great Mark Waugh for the number of times he has been dismissed in his career.
Marnus Labuschagne’s batting coach Neil D’Costa has slammed Mark Waugh for caring more about horse racing gambling than his cricket commentary after recent criticism of the star batsman (pictured)
Fox even went so far as to put together a stats sheet that revealed what Labuschagne’s career average would have been had those chances been taken.
Labuschagne’s coach Neil D’Costa thought the criticism was disrespectful and hit out at Waugh for his obsession with horse racing.
‘I heard about this line of commentary,’ D’Costa told the Sydney Morning Herald.
‘There are many other nuances in the game that require discussion and I would like to discuss.
‘Nowadays I know that Mark Waugh’s real business is his horse racing – I often wonder how much luck is involved in that sport?
Labuschagne’s coach Neil D’Costa (pictured) thought the criticism was disrespectful and hit out at Waugh for his horse racing obsession
‘They really have nothing left to talk about. Look, Marnus doesn’t give up on catches – it’s not his fault – but that focus really takes away from the hard work he’s put in to get where he is.
‘He is as dedicated as anyone in the game and should be recognized for that, not as a fluke. It’s lazy and disrespectful to focus on it.
‘I mean, in the history of the game, there have been centuries without a chance, and I’m sure some bowlers from a few years ago would have liked DRS over Mark Waugh.
D’Costa says Mark Waugh’s real business is his horse racing, not cricket – in remarks which may have been prompted by a recent video of the champion batsman paying attention to his form guide while commentating (pictured)
‘These comments and the repetition of them have a very personal tone. I don’t think it will affect Marnus because he isn’t sitting there watching the commentary, and it won’t affect me.
‘I have options – I can hit the mute button and listen to the radio, and I advise others to do the same.’
Waugh is married to NSW thoroughbred trainer Kim Waugh and has gone on record as saying ‘cricket often gets in the way of my interest in horse racing’.
A recent video of Waugh watching a horse race on his phone while doing cricket commentary also did the rounds on social media and may have prompted D’Costa’s remarks.
D’Costa doesn’t think the comments will affect Labuschagne (pictured) – who is currently No. 1 ranked Test batsman in the world
Cricket fans had mixed responses to the clip, but many felt it was unprofessional of a commentator.
‘It turns out Mark and I have one thing in common, we both ignore work by watching sports unrelated to our work,’ said one Reddit user.
‘The perfect way to watch test cricket,’ said another.
‘About the level of professionalism I expect from him unfortunately,’ commented a third.
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