Whatever the MCG Test result, Jasprit “Boom Boom” Bumrah and Sam “Kid” Konstas will head to the SCG level on points in their private bout.
The Indian ace did not hide his emotions on Sunday when he bowled the Australian debutant with a gem of a delivery that went between bat and pad.
Bumrah excitedly urged the crowd to make more noise, parodying Konstas’s gestures when the teenage Australian had been fielding.
After Konstas drove Bumrah and the rest of the Indian team to distraction in the first innings, playing a succession of ramp shots on the way to a crucial 60, he was this time fired out for eight.
Just as Konstas’s half-century set the tone for the first innings, his cheap dismissal as the opening second-innings wicket signalled a torrid time ahead for the Australian top order.
Fellow Australian batsman Marnus Labuschagne had no doubt there was a reason for Bumrah’s animation when he bowled Konstas.
“I’m pretty sure the young guy got under his skin a bit,” Labuschagne said of Bumrah.
“I certainly get angry when I ‘wang’ them (throw downs at training) and get reverse-lapped, let alone bowl it.
“I’d say that had a fair bit to do with it.”
Bumrah’s tussle with the 19-year-old opener sets the scene for an absorbing second round when Konstas plays a Test at his home ground for the first time next week – a clash that could decide the Border-Gavaskar series.
As much as Labuschagne says Bumrah is “relentless”, he is also rapt with Konstas’s attitude.
After scoring 72 and 70 in the Boxing Day Test, Labuschagne said Konstas’s unorthodox approach had influenced him.
“Sam is a very confident young player and he really shows that. I love that about him,” Labuschagne said.
“So he’ll love getting in the contest and he’ll love that Bumrah has revved it up. I’m sure he’ll be ready to go for the next innings.
“That first innings, watching Sam bat and the way he went about it, I was sitting there with Steve (Smith) and saying, ‘We really have to look at how we’re going about it, because this looks way more fun’.
“It probably just made me think about actually what’s my best method, rather than thinking about (technique) – it was just more tactical, ‘OK, how am I going to find a way through this? How am I going to score runs’?”
Content Source: www.perthnow.com.au