15 hours Ago
Melbourne: You knew something was going to happen from the moment Sam Konstas, all of 19, sprinted out of the blocks and onto the field of play at the Melbourne Cricket Ground on Thursday. It was Day 1 of the Boxing Day Test, Pat Cummins had won the toss, Australia were going to bat and debutant Konstas had reached the middle before everyone else. Some dismissed that as youthful enthusiasm, a kid trying to calm the nerves.
And that is what it felt like for the first over of the match as Jasprit Bumrah beat him four times in six balls. The right-hander struggled to get bat on ball. There were a few knowing glances thrown about as if to say, ‘this is Bumrah, he’ll school you’.
Then, in the next over from Bumrah, he finally got off the mark with a couple off the second ball. Off the fifth ball, he went for a reverse ramp; a reverse ramp off a bowler who had been pretty much untouchable all series. But Konstas clearly didn’t care about appearances.
He was brought in to challenge the pacer differently and he was going to do that. One of the first shots Konstas had pulled off in the nets at the MCG soon after his press conference was a reverse ramp off Marnus Labuschagne chucking with a sidearm. And his reaction right after he’d pulled off the shot? “Bowled Bumrah.
” So, this wasn’t a youngster getting desperate. This was him following his plan to a ’T’. The third over from Bumrah was the same.
Six dot balls and another attempted reverse scoop thrown in. Konstas was going to succeed or die trying. He was certainly not intimidated.
At this point, Bumrah’s bowling figures were 3-2-2-0. Then, off the first ball of the eighth over, Konstas got it right. The scoop worked.
He shuffled across his stumps and scooped it over the keeper. The next shot was even better — it was a full delivery outside the off-stump and the batter reversed his stance and sent it over the cordon for a six. It was the first six hit off Bumrah’s bowling in Tests since Cameron Green hit one in the New Year’s Test at the SCG in 2021.
Konstas wasn’t done though. Another four off the fifth ball of the over — this time a reverse scoop — helped him take 14 runs off the Bumrah over. The Indian pacer was up against it.
A few more runs came off Bumrah’s next over but the drama shifted to Siraj’s end. Konstas drove a delivery straight back and Siraj had a few words for him. The very next ball, Konstas played a cracking cut shot for four and gave some lip to the bowler too.
Virat Kohli, standing in the slips, was watching all of this. Then, when the over ended, Kohli with the ball in hand, almost seemed to make a beeline for Konstas. They bumped shoulders and the youngster didn’t like it one bit.
Kohli seemed to gesture that he was shining the ball and didn’t see where he was going. Usman Khawaja and the umpire stepped in to calm things down. Ricky Ponting said on air: “Virat’s walked one whole pitch over to his right and instigated that confrontation.
No doubt in my mind whatsoever.” But by the time Bumrah rolled in for the next over, Konstas was in a mood to give it back a bit more. The first ball was flat-batted past mid-off for a four.
The fourth was hammered for a six over long-on and the fifth was hit for a four, off the stumps, in the backward point region. In all, 18 runs came off the over and Bumrah’s opening six-over spell had gone for 38 runs. That was the true impact of the innings.
It rattled the Indians and while they went looking for answers, Konstas made merry. His knock took the pressure off Khawaja at the other end and immediately put the visitors under pressure. During the drinks break, Konstas spoke to Fox Cricket’s flying Fox mic: “It’s quite surreal.
Look at the turn out. I’m just trying to play with some freedom and just back myself. Hopefully I can get a few more.
(Did you think about the ramps last night or when the ball was coming down?) When the ball was coming down. I’ll look to keep targeting him. Hopefully, he might come back on.
But we’ll see what happens.” He didn’t make much of the incidents with the Indian players, saying: “Whatever (happens) on the field stays on the field. It doesn’t get any better for a debut with this packed stadium.
” Soon enough, Konstas got to his fifty off 52 balls — it was the third fastest fifty on debut for an Australian. Only Adam Gilchrist (46 balls v Pakistan, 1999) and Ashton Agar (50 balls v England, 2013) had reached the mark quicker. He was also the second-youngest batter to score a half-century for Australia in Tests.
Only Ian Craig (17 years, 240 days v SA, 1953) was younger. Konstas kept going for a bit more before being dismissed, trapped lbw by Ravindra Jadeja but the impact of his 60 will be felt way beyond the 65 balls he spent in the middle. It set the tone for the Test and immediately gave the Aussies the boost that their batting so desperately needed.
Yes, it’s just the beginning but what a beginning it was. Those who watched will ever forget..
