Dropped
The long period of international cricket was broken and Laird was afforded the opportunity to return to regular Shield cricket. He played 6 matches in the 1980/81 season opening with the young star Graeme Wood, his opening partner in the Centenary Test. Wood had the better season scoring 542 runs to Laird's 209. Despite Western Australia winning the Shield that year, this poor form saw Laird dropped from the Test side and replaced by his team-mate. Wood was then selected for 25 consecutive Test matches and would continue to feature in the side until 1992, scoring nine hundreds in his test career. Laird missed three test series against New Zealand, India and the famous Ashes series in England in 1981. But would earn a recall to the test side for the home series against Pakistan, thanks to a bright start to the 1981/82 Shield season. A score of 110 not out and the continuing success of his partnership with Wood, convincing returning captain Greg Chappell to call on him again.
Laird was picked for the next twelve tests to partner Wood at the top of the batting order. They started well against Pakistan averaging 65 runs for the first wicket in the three test series, with a best of 109. In the opening test of the summer held at the WACA Ground, Laird was one of seven Western Australians selected in the Australian Test team, alongside Wood, Kim Hughes, Rod Marsh, Bruce Yardley, Dennis Lillee and Terry Alderman. It was in the 1981/82 World Series Cup that Laird would score his only international century, 117 not out against the West Indies. Back in the Test arena, Laird and Wood averaged 43.1 as a partnership, with two century partnerships and six of fifty or more. However Australia were not performing well and the selectors wanted changes. It happened that Laird was dropped after a 3-0 whitewash defeat against Pakistan in 1982 and never regained his place.
He ended his 21 Test career having never scored an official Test century, with the three he scored in the Supertests never being officially recognised. Of the players who haven't scored a Test century, Laird has scored more runs than any other Australian opener and has the highest batting average amongst players with more than 1000 Test runs or more than twenty innings batted.
Laird continued to represent Australia in ODIs until his final game in Pakistan in October 1982 when he scored a 91 not out in an unsuccessful run chase. After being dropped by Australia Laird's Shield form improved. In 1982/83 he scored 610 runs (ave. 40.66) and Western Australia won the Shield in the final against New South Wales. Western Australia completed the double winning the MacDonalds Cup against New South Wales by four wickets. In 1983/84, he spent most of the season batting at five. Laird smashed 684 runs at 48.85 and captained Western Australia for the first time in Shield cricket against South Australia at Perth.
Bruce Laird bowed out of professional cricket by winning another Shield title defeating Queensland in the 1983/84 final, finishing with scores 63 and 54 as Western Australia won by four wickets.
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