Steve Smith jokes that if players like Sam Konstas are the future of Test cricket, it might be time for him to give it away.
The pair, at either end of their careers, surged Australia to a commanding position across the first two days of the Boxing Day Test.
Konstas with a swashbuckling two hours of bravado and Smith with a typically calm, craft and well-composed century.
Australia’s teenage debutant didn’t shy away from the spotlight on day two either. He was revving up the famous — and very rowdy — bay 13 in the evening session and gave the same part of the crowd a hearty fist pump after the Aussies claimed the wicket of Virat Kohli late in the day.
Konstas is the best glimpse we’ve ever had of Australia’s Test future, but Smith said it wasn’t an easy watch.
“I don’t think much fazes the young kid, as we saw yesterday, he was reverse ramping Bumrah and I was having a heartache up in the box,” he said.
“If it’s the future, maybe it’s time for me to finish. I mean, you have got to have some serious courage to do what he did yesterday.
“That first over, Bumrah beat him three or four times, bowled some really nice balls and I actually thought he played them really well. He played down the line and they just did too much and beat the outside edge.
“For a kid to have the confidence to start lapping and reverse lapping arguably one of the best bowlers that have played the game shows some real confidence in the kid and some real courage.”
Konstas’ barrage against Bumrah, who has taken 25 wickets for the series and had a stranglehold over Australia’s top order, was a marked change in tactics.
Selectors picked the 19-year-old over Nathan McSweeney, who they debuted in Perth just over a month ago, but had struggled in the first three Tests of his fledgling career.
There had been calls for Australia’s batters to be more proactive in those roles, particularly against Bumrah.
“It sort of swung momentum our way. I think you saw when he got picked George (Bailey) and Ron (Andrew McDonald) said they wanted to see something different, show something different to the new ball and we certainly saw that,” Smith said.
“It worked out really well for us yesterday.”
Content Source: www.perthnow.com.au