The young opener put India on the back foot with his outrageous shots, reminding people of a recent attacking batter whose absence is felt
Ian Chappell29-Dec-2024The team doesn’t mention it but the player Australia has badly missed is the ultra-aggressive opener David Warner.Australia were without a top-order batter who could disrupt the opposition with his strokeplay and make opposition bowlers think differently. Well, on Boxing Day they found such a player in vibrant young opener Sam Konstas.He not only disrupted India and gave Jasprit Bumrah something to seriously ponder, he also frustrated the opposition. In the end Virat Kohli succumbed and resorted to a physical approach. This is not the answer; cricket isn’t a physical game – it requires skill and thought.Related
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Konstas’ strategy was sound: shift some of the catching fielders and don’t allow good bowlers to operate the way they want to. It was his execution that was so different from Warner’s, and it remains to be seen if his is a viable long-term method.It certainly worked on Boxing Day but India will have noted that whenever Konstas played traditional cricket shots, his success rate was extremely low. Will this mean that in future India tries to force Konstas to play more normal cricket shots?This is how the battle plays out in Test cricket: a player arrives, batting in an unusual manner, then it’s up to the opposition bowlers to re-assess. Once the bowling team reacts, it’s the batter who has to make an adjustment. This is an ongoing process until one gains the upper hand.Apart from creating an immediate cult following, Konstas made life simpler for his fellow batters. Konstas’ outrageous blitz on the Indian new-ball bowlers allowed Australia to burst out of the gates and put themselves in a strong position.In his own way Konstas caused India to slip into the mentality of feeling sorry for themselves about the opposition playing and missing and edges falling short of the cordon. It wasn’t until late in the day when the batting took on a more normal approach that Bumrah began to exert some control over the Australian team again.
A player arrives, batting in an unusual manner, and it’s up to the opposition bowlers to reassess. Once the bowling team reacts, it’s the batter who has to make an adjustment. This is an ongoing process until one gains the upper hand.
In the build-up, Konstas’ statistical likeness to Ricky Ponting (twin centuries in a Shield game) was noted. Normally a statistical likeness with one of Australia’s best batters places a heavy burden on the newcomer. However, Konstas made light of any debutant pressure. The burden will come later when – not if – he fails.It’s then that his method will be questioned rather than admired. How Konstas reacts will decide whether he has the courage and skill to disregard the doubters, as Warner did, to become a highly successful batter.What Konstas’ gregarious attitude did do was energise Steve Smith, who rediscovered his old self and began to play with more freedom. Smith’s strokeplay and skipper Pat Cummins’ determination put Australia on the path to a big total.With Australia dominating the must-win Test, India needed to mount a strong fightback.It was then that the confident Yashasvi Jaiswal made it the story of two brash young openers, as he instituted his own form of disruption. Playing with flair, scintillating strokes and assurance, Jaiswal, with solid assistance from a determined Kohli, pushed India into safer waters.Just when it looked as though India were mounting a serious challenge, Jaiswal went and spoiled it all by saying “yes”. The inexcusable mix-up that followed resulted in him being needlessly run-out. Then Kohli, disoriented by the senseless waste, lost concentration and his dismissal meant India were in big trouble.The talented young openers from each side played their part in giving this Test a sense of drama but Konstas was better supported by his more experienced team-mates.Now it remains to be seen if India can regroup and provide the fight needed to keep Australia at bay. India will require all the resolve they can muster, as the result of this Test could well decide the destination of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy.
