Too early to judge Sam Konstas' Test career: Australia coach Andrew McDonald

India Today

6 days ago

Australia coach Andrew McDonald said it is too early to judge Sam Konstas' Test career on the back of four Tests but admitted that there is a great chance for the domestic performers. Konstas, who made his debut during the Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2024-25 series against India, impressed everyone with his bold batting style. However, during the ongoing Test series agains West Indies, the returns haven't been great for the 19-year-old. advertisementKonstas has scored just 33 runs in four innings, with his highest score being 25, and has an average of 8.25. The opener received the backing of captain Pat Cummins after the second Test and now head coach McDonald has come to the defence of the youngster. Speaking to the reporters, as quoted by the Sydney Morning Herald, the Aussie coach said that Konstas is still finding his feet in the current environment. "Four games in, eight innings, it's probably early for anyone to judge, really," McDonald said of Konstas' early Test career. "I think the challenges in Test cricket aren't necessarily always your skill level or your technique. It's dealing with the moments, the pressure, all the other things that externally come with that as well. He's a player finding his feet in the environment."
McDonald pointed to the 25 that Konstas scored in the first innings of the second Test and felt that it was a small step for the 19-year-old and he had structured his innings well in his first 20-odd balls and showed positive intent. "[It was] a small step forward in the last game with that first innings. I thought the way he structured up his first 20-odd balls, he had the positive intent, he was moving a lot better compared to the game before where it looked like he was stuck in the middle and didn't know whether to play a shot and it was either ultra-aggressive or ultra-defensive," said McDonald. 'We're watching domestic performers closely'McDonald also conceded that there is an opportunity for the domestic stars to push their case for the upcoming Ashes series at home with the early games in the Sheffield Shield and the Australia A games. "There's great opportunity in domestic cricket at the start of the season, and there always is leading into any Test series," McDonald said. "We saw with the Border-Gavaskar Trophy last year, there was opportunity for players to put their hand up there. There's also Australia A [against Sri Lanka A] in the Top End [Darwin] at the moment, so we're watching that closelyso it's really about the opportunity that presents.advertisement"First and foremost, we concentrate on what's right here, right now. Everyone will be speculating around who can come in, what possibilities are, but we're confident the players that we've got here can do the job."The third Test between the West Indies and Australia is scheduled to begin on July 13. - EndsMust Watch