Aussie paceman Mitchell Starc has revealed the one teammate who didn’t embrace the fearless batting approach from Sam Konstas in the Boxing Day Test at the MCG against India.
The answer: Steve Smith.
It comes as Konstas, 19, is set to be overlooked by selectors ahead of the first Test in Galle versus Sri Lanka, which starts on Wednesday afternoon.
Travis Head is tipped to open the batting with Usman Khawaja, with the vacant spot in the middle-order likely to go to Josh Inglis.
Starc, 34, sat down with for a Backstage podcast chat with rugby league identities Cooper and Matty Johns – and he confirmed how the changeroom reacted to Konstas upsetting the tourists – notably Jasprit Bumrah and Virat Kohli – with his unorthodox approach at the crease.
‘It was quite something,’ the 94-Test veteran recalled.
‘For when he [Konstas] started doing it [ramp shots] we were all like ‘what is going on here? ‘what is this kid doing’?
‘Basically everyone was quickly on board…..bar one player.
Aussie paceman Mitchell Starc has revealed the one teammate who didn’t embrace the fearless batting of Sam Konstas in the Boxing Day Test at the MCG against India
Mitchell Starc told rugby league identities Cooper and Matty Johns that Steve Smith was puzzled by the batting approach of Sam Konstas
‘Steve Smith….he was stressing. He found it bizarre and later said ‘I’m done, cricket has past me, I’m too old for this.’
Starc saw the funny side of the situation, and admitted he was ‘probably there too.’
Meanwhile, Head’s supreme efforts facing the new ball on the previous subcontinent tour in 2023 appear to be enough to have won him the spot next to Usman Khawaja for the first of two matches in Sri Lanka – at the expense of Konstas.
Head averaged 55.75 runs across two-and-a-half Tests replacing David Warner on that India tour, two years ago.
‘He did really nicely in India against the new ball. He put spinners under pressure immediately and we know how well he hits the seam as well if they come with that,’ stand-in captain Steve Smith said.
‘It’s going to be good fun watching him.’
Smith would not rule out Konstas remaining in the middle order, but to keep his spot in the XI, the young NSW star will have to compete with the more experienced duo of Josh Inglis and Nathan McSweeney.
It comes as Konstas, 19, is set to be overlooked by selectors ahead of the first Test in Galle versus Sri Lanka, which starts on Wednesday afternoon
The inexperience of Sam Konstas appears to have worked against him in the selection conversation, with the teenager embarking on his first subcontinent tour
English-born Inglis is uncapped at Test level – but is Australia’s white-ball wicketkeeper and has long featured in national red-ball squads as the understudy to gloveman Alex Carey.
There has previously been suggestions he could play as a specialist batter as he averaged 72.6 across three matches of Western Australia this summer.
Inglis would likely bring similar middle-order aggression and is experienced in Asian conditions; he replaced Carey as wicketkeeper in Australia’s triumphant 2023 ODI World Cup campaign in India.
‘Josh is quite comfortable where his game is at, he’s been around a while, played a lot of cricket,’ Smith said.
‘He provides really good skills against spin, he scores all around the ground.
‘If he gets an opportunity, he’ll do a really good job.’
McSweeney averaged only 14.4 on a tough assignment in his first three Test matches, facing Indian pace ace Jasprit Bumrah out of position as an opener next to Khawaja.
But the South Australian captain has batted in the middle order in his 30 Sheffield Shield appearances and blasted an unbeaten 127 earlier in the summer.
The inexperience of Konstas appears to have worked against him in the selection conversation, with the 19-year-old embarking on his first subcontinent tour.
Smith said Australia had to keep the foreign conditions in mind.
‘Just playing what’s in front of us, it’s quite different to back home on the surfaces we’ve been playing on there where it’s very pace dominant,’ he said.
‘You would imagine this is going to be quite spin dominant.’
