Marnus help instrumental for leader-in-waiting McSweeney

As he boarded a plane out of Brisbane to Canberra on Monday night, Nathan McSweeney knew he needed to put the two hours of flight time to good use.

"I've got to do a speech at Parliament House tomorrow, and I haven't written anything yet," the Prime Minister's XI skipper told cricket.com.au. "So I'll be taking some notes and putting some palm cards together."

It was another in a rush of new experiences for the 24-year-old in recent times. After a breakout 2022-23 season with South Australia, McSweeney has been clearly earmarked as an international player in waiting, having twice been handed the captaincy in Australia A series against New Zealand this year, and this week taking the top job in Prime Minister Anthony Albanese's XI against Pakistan at Canberra's Manuka Oval.

A stylish batter with all the shots, he has scored four Sheffield Shield hundreds since the beginning of last summer and leads the way for the '25 and under' brigade in terms of runs scored through the same period (993 at 39.72), having benefited from the tutelage of the Redbacks' English batting coach Stephen Stubbings.

Yet it was the hard work he put in before that breakthrough summer that has been the true secret to McSweeney's recent success. And it is a modus operandi replicated from one of the world's best.

"I was lucky enough to work with Marnus (Labuschagne) before I left (Queensland) for South Australia," he says. "He was massive for me in the COVID year where the Aussie guys didn't do much travel. He side-armed to me in the nets and we would bat together all the time."

It is no coincidence that McSweeney's game has been likened to Australia's Test No.3, both for his ability to wear down an attack but also aesthetically; the two athletic right-handers are both quick to pick up length and thus well positioned to cut, pull and drive the quicks, while both use their feet expertly against spin.

The pair are still in regular communication; even during the recent World Cup, the eternally enthusiastic Labuschagne continued to serve as the ideal mentor for one of the country's most promising young batters.

"He loves it," grins McSweeney. "He loves FaceTiming. I think his wife Bec would get a bit annoyed at times when he's tapping his bat on the floor in the middle of the night, trying to show me what he reckons. But I'm forever grateful because he's so generous with his time.

"His work ethic and the way he wants to better himself every day is pretty impressive. He continues to try and tinker and change and find out ways he can do it better. So for me, just watching him and then listening to what he's thinking, that helps me heaps.

"And when I do well, he sends me a message, which isn't a big thing for him, but for me, who's trying to follow in his footsteps, it definitely has plenty of weight."

With Brisbane Heat, as they zig and zag with their availability (McSweeney will miss the first two Big Bash matches, while Labuschagne will join the Test squad after tonight's opener against the Stars), they are required to fill the same kind of role.

"We can bowl a few overs if needed, and bat in the top order – we're very similar in that sense," he says. "Obviously I've got a bit to go to get to where he is, but I think I can model my game similar to his.

"My job when I'm batting is to get (the bigger hitters) on strike as much as I can, and then catch up my runs later in the innings … try and control the innings, read the scenario, and make sure we're at the score we want at the end of the 20 overs."

McSweeney executed that blueprint brilliantly at the Gabba in a breakout knock of 84 from 51 balls against the Sixers in January. It came in his first innings since earning a recall with the Heat, and for the relative T20 rookie (he has played just nine BBL matches) it was a confidence-building performance.

"For me, who's probably more a traditional-type player – prides themselves on batting for a long period of time – to come out here with the pressure of scoring runs at a good rate and to be able to do that at first opportunity was great," he says.

"Hopefully I can draw on that experience and go again this year."

Before he makes a welcome return to the familiarity of family and friends in Brisbane however, McSweeney has the opportunity to impress against Pakistan, both as captain and middle-order batter.

Even as a teen, he was regarded as a leader, having skippered state and national teams through his pathways journey, and as Cricket Australia looks to identify its next wave of players with potential in that space, he appears to be front and centre.

"It is intimidating captaining guys like Cam Green, Cameron Bancroft and Jimmy Peirson, guys who have been doing it for a long time," he says. "But it's a great learning experience for me as well.

"I'll be very open and trying to get as many ideas as I can."

NRMA Insurance Test series v Pakistan

Prime Minister's XI v Pakistan XI: December 6-9, Manuka Oval (10.30am AEDT)

First Test: December 14-18, Perth Stadium (1.20pm AEDT)

Second Test: December 26-30, MCG (10.30am AEDT)

Third Test: January 3-7, SCG (10.30am AEDT)

Australia squad: (first Test only) Pat Cummins (c), Scott Boland, Alex Carey, Cameron Green, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Usman Khawaja, Marnus Labuschagne, Nathan Lyon, Mitch Marsh, Lance Morris, Steve Smith, Mitch Starc, David Warner

Pakistan squad: Shan Masood (c), Aamir Jamal, Abdullah Shafique, Abrar Ahmed, Babar Azam, Faheem Ashraf, Hasan Ali, Imam-ul-Haq, Khurram Shahzad, Mir Hamza, Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Mohammad Wasim Jnr, Noman Ali, Saim Ayub, Salman Ali Agha, Sarfaraz Ahmed (wk), Saud Shakeel and Shaheen Shah Afridi