Trend the friend Marnus hopes to carry into Oval finale

If England were in any doubt as to the most obdurate batting obstacle standing between them and a resurgent run at an historic Ashes series win, it came midway through a sodden two-hour session at Old Trafford yesterday.

Since Australia stormed to a 2-0 lead with a hard-fought victory at Lord's, the campaign has shifted decisively in the home team's favour with a barnstorming triumph at Headingley and a dominant all-round effort here that only Manchester's miserable weather seems able to stymie.

But as the returns from a majority of Australia's top-order batters slide undeniably downwards, Marnus Labuschagne is increasingly conspicuous as the exception whose performances have become demonstrably more productive.

And a reason why Labuschagne is seemingly better equipped to defy the speed of Mark Wood, seam movement of Stuart Broad and subtle swing of Chris Woakes and Jimmy Anderson was underscored in a single incident midway through yesterday's 30-over session sandwiched between lengthy rain delays.

England were finding little assistance from a ball 57 overs old other than a passing hint of reverse swing, and even that weapon was being blunted every time Labuschagne or his batting partner Mitchell Marsh struck it across the outfield where it collected more residual moisture.

So England's self-appointed ball sheriff Broad took it upon himself to launch one of his regular complaints about the orb's integrity, and his teammates were delighted when that was upheld and a replacement fetched from a box kept in the umpires' room.

In days past, that ceremony would have included input from the bowling team, but that convention has been changed and selection of a substitute is now literally in the hands of on-field officials.

Once a suitable likeness is identified, the replacement ball is usually tossed to the bowler and/or fielding team captain for the game to continue.

But before England could get it in their grasp, Labuschagne bluntly told them he also wanted to check it out.

Given he was 74 at the time, and his partnership with Marsh worth 55 and posing a significant threat to England's hopes of closing out a win against Manchester's ever-present rain, rival captain Ben Stokes was understandably aggrieved about giving his foe any sort of heads-up as to what was coming.

However, Labuschagne stood his ground and the ball was tossed his way for inspection before he, in turn, relayed it to a similarly unimpressed Anderson to resume England's attack.

"They weren't happy that I wanted to have a look at the ball," Labuschagne revealed at day's end, having completed his first Ashes century on enemy soil with an innings that might yet prove pivotal in Australia's quest to retain the urn.

"But I wanted to have a look at the ball because in this country, it's pretty clear if you look at the ball once you can pretty much tell straight away what it's going to do.

"I looked at the ball and was like 'this is going to swing', and I threw it back.

"For me it's just common sense.

"If the ball looked like the ball they had before you could think 'well, it's probably not going to do much' but you could feel it straight away on the bat, a harder ball, the seam was a little bit bigger and it swung straight away."

Armed with that element of inside knowledge, Labuschagne added a further 37 to his tally before another knock-on factor from the ball change brought about his demise.

With the harder, drier ball in his possession, Stokes immediately wanted to reintroduce his fastest bowler Wood who has loomed as the biggest single reason why Australia's other top-order batters have diminished in effectiveness since he roared into the series at Headingley.

However, before Wood could let loose the first of his regular 150kph thunderbolts, those same umpires decreed the slightly darker replacement ball might be tougher to see in Manchester's dank gloom and advised Stokes he could either bowl his spinners or play would be suspended.

With rain again closing in, and knowing England must win this Test to keep the five-Test Ashes series alive, Stokes turned to spin and after a flurry of shots from Labuschagne that saw Australia add 45 invaluable runs from nine overs, he perished in trying to cut part-time tweaker Joe Root.

"It was in England's court there to go off the field or keep bowling spin, and having two spinners on I felt it was an opportunity for us to put a little bit of pressure back on them," Labuschagne said.

"Obviously Joe getting me out at the end's not the ideal finish for us, but 1-101 in that session made a bit of a dent in the deficit.

"It's always a privilege to score a Test hundred, it doesn't happen that often and you have to recognise it is special.

"But currently, sitting here, it's still a bit bittersweet just with the circumstance of the game.

"If we end up saving the match then it will be a pretty good moment but, until then, (I'm) sitting on the edge."

In the wake of his equal-top score (51 alongside Marsh) in Australia's first innings, Labuschagne spoke about the tweaks he's made to his technique throughout what has been a challenging Ashes battle and how he now feels more assured in his decision-making at the crease.

He attributes that shift for his comparative success against Wood who has captured 11 Australia wickets at 17 runs apiece since being unleashed in the third Test, but is yet to knock over their number three.

It goes a long way to explaining why Labuschagne is one of only two batters in Australia's top five to have improved their yield since the team's win at Lord's with his 216 runs at 54 in the past two Tests (highest score 111) a marked improvement on the 90 at 22.5 he managed in the first two, with a best of 47.

The only other specialist batter to have bettered their return since Wood's arrival is Travis Head, whose 150 at 37.5 in the first two Tests has been bettered marginally with 165 at 41.25 in the subsequent matches.

"I feel like my game's in really good space to be facing him (Wood)," Labuschagne said at the close of day four with Australia 5-214 and still 61 in arrears with a day remaining.

"The technical changes I've made, it allows me to make really good decisions and get in positions to either pull, duck, leave or sway.

"The key to batting is to be able to have as many options as you can for a delivery, and that's what I feel at the moment.

"But that's just for one Test and we've got another massive Test after tomorrow."

That "massive" assignment is at The Oval where, regardless of whether Australia's remaining batters or Manchester's relentless rain can deliver a draw at Old Trafford, sees his team needing a win to secure their first Ashes series success in the UK since 2001.

Labuschagne is wary of claiming trend has now become his friend after a lean start to the campaign by his insatiable standards, other than to suggest he's "in a good place" with his game after endless tinkering in the practice nets over recent weeks.

But he applies the same mitigation to suggestions England will surely take significant momentum to The Oval next Thursday, given the wave of jingoistic fervour their recent performances have generated.

"We lost at Headingley last time and then won at Manchester," he said, citing the 2019 series where England's astonishing last-gasp win in the third Test on the back of Stokes's lone hand dissipated into a thumping loss in the next game where Australia retained the Ashes.

"If ever there was a time that momentum that meant anything it was after being very close to winning and then getting it snatched away.

"It felt like England had all the momentum, but the reality is it will come down to The Oval and which team plays better.

"If we play like we did at Lord's where we put a pretty comprehensive performance together, that's going to be the difference.

"It's not going to be about what's been or what's gone, it's going to be about what's to come."

2023 Qantas Ashes Tour of the UK

First Test: Australia won by two wickets

Second Test: Australia won by 43 runs

Third Test: Thursday July 6-Monday July 10, Headingley

Fourth Test: Wednesday July 19-Sunday July 23, Old Trafford

Fifth Test: Thursday July 27-Monday 31, The Oval

Australia squad: Pat Cummins (c), Scott Boland, Alex Carey (wk), Cameron Green, Marcus Harris, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Josh Inglis (wk), Usman Khawaja, Marnus Labuschagne, Nathan Lyon, Mitch Marsh, Todd Murphy, Michael Neser, Matthew Renshaw, Steve Smith (vc), Mitchell Starc, David Warner

England squad: Ben Stokes (c), Rehan Ahmed, James Anderson, Jonathan Bairstow, Stuart Broad, Harry Brook, Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Dan Lawrence, Jack Leach, Ollie Pope, Matthew Potts, Ollie Robinson, Joe Root, Josh Tongue, Chris Woakes, Mark Wood