Under Fire, Backed by Coach: Australian Batter Konstas Gets Support After Tough Test Return | Cricket News
Australia’s teenage opener, Sam Konstas, will be given “patience and time” by coach Andrew McDonald following a tough debut Test against the West Indies in Barbados. Despite Australia’s dominant 159‑run victory powered by Josh Hazlewood’s five-wicket haul Australia’s top-order struggled against a tricky pitch featuring inconsistent bounce and lateral movement. Konstas, in particular, managed only 3 and 5 in his two innings. In just his third Test, the 19-year-old right-hander was troubled by Shamar Joseph, who exploited Konstas’s edges for two lbw dismissals. Dropped behind the stumps twice earlier in his 38-ball stay, Konstas was bowled playing onto his stumps. Playing after his memorable debut half-century against Bumrah’s India, he seemed to lose his footing.
McDonald put it into perspective: “The players are the harshest critics really when all is said and done. We’ve had some conversations around potentially if you’re in that situation again what does that look like and that’s what experience is. It’s learning from previous events and trying to implement a way through that. It felt like he was stuck at times and he was over-aggressive and then [he] underplayed. It’s really that balance and tempo. He’s got that there and that’s a step up to Test cricket. He’s got a really good partner down the other end [in Usman Khawaja] that over time, I think, will play out. That’s all we ask for – a bit of patience and time with a young player coming into Test cricket.”
McDonald highlighted that even seasoned batsmen found Barbados’s seam-friendly pitch challenging. Shamar Joseph’s prior performances including dismissing Konstas during the WTC final at the Gabba and India’s Bumrah showed a pattern. Still, McDonald emphasized the importance of adaptability:
“He knows his deficiencies but, from a batting perspective, I encourage all players to learn to play with their deficiencies. I don’t think there’s such a thing as a perfect technique. If that’s what you’re looking for then I think you’re looking in the wrong place. He’ll learn to play with what he’s got. We’re a team that encourages run-scoring. Did he lose his intent at certain times in that innings? Was he looking at his defensive layers rather than potentially putting some pressure back on? I think that’s really the balance he needs to strike. I think he’s good enough. It’ll just take some time for him to adapt.”
Konstas returned to squad after being sidelined during the tour of Sri Lanka and the World Test Championship final loss to South Africa. The second test will be played at St George from July 2nd.
Australia’s Test squad: Pat Cummins (c), Sean Abbott, Scott Boland, Alex Carey, Cameron Green, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Josh Inglis, Usman Khawaja, Sam Konstas, Matt Kuhnemann, Marnus Labuschagne, Nathan Lyon, Steve Smith, Mitchell Starc, Beau Webster
