Sam Konstas Test Debut - Thursday 26 December 2024

Sutherland District Cricket Club | December 27, 2024

Sam Konstas became Australian Test player #468 on Boxing Day – the second Australian Test player with Greek heritage after Jason Gillespie. He is the fourth youngest Test player for Australia:

 

             Test No.    Player                        Age            Opponent         Date

 

               194        Ian Craig                 17y 239d     South Africa     6 Feb 1953

               423        Pat Cummins          18y 193d     South Africa     17 Nov 2011

                   4        Tom Garrett            18y 232d      England           15 Mar 1877

               468        Sam Konstas          19y 85d        India                26 Dec 2024

                 74        Clem Hill                 19y 96d        England           2 Jun 1896

                 89        Gerry Hazlitt           19y 100d      England           13 Dec 1907

 

Sam was dismissed for 60 off 65 balls in 90 minutes, hitting 6 fours & 2 sixes. He brought up his 50 off 52 balls (5 fours & 2 sixes) – the third fastest 50 on debut for Australia behind Adam Gilchrist (46 balls) & Ashton Agar (50 balls). It was also the fastest 50 on debut in terms of overs since the start of the Test, coming after 13.1 0vers (previous fastest by Prithvi Shaw, India in 2018).

Full innings:

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 3 4 6 0 0 4 0 0 1 0 0 L 0 2 0 0 4 1 4 0 2 6 4 2 2 0 0 0 0 0 1 2 4 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 3 0 W

 

He was the 19th Australian to reach 50 on debut at the MCG; the second to do it on Boxing Day, after Ed Cowan in 2011-12. Australian players with scores of at least 50 on Test debut at MCG:

 

          Test No.    Player                                 Score      Opponent          Season

 

                  1        Charles Bannerman          165*     England          1876-77

                16       Alec Bannerman                  73       England          1878-79

                39       John Trumble                        59       England        1884-85

                81      Reg Duff                              104      England (2nd inns)    1901-02

              120       Albert Hartkopf                     80       England          1924-25

              122       Alan Fairfax                           65       England          1928-29

              180       Sam Loxton                            80       India          1947-48

              188       Graeme Hole                         63       England (2nd inns)     1950-51

              194       Ian Craig                                 53       South Africa         1952-53

              216       Johnny Martin                      55       West Indies          1960-61

              227       Ian Redpath                           97       South Africa          1963-64

              267       Gary Gilmour                        52       New Zealand         1973-74

              274       Gary Cosier                          109      West Indies          1975-76

              276       David Hookes                        56       England (2nd inns)     1976-77

              322       Greg Matthews                     75       Pakistan          1983-84

              343       Tony Dodemaide                  50       New Zealand          1987-88

              385       Martin Love                           62*    England          2002-03

              427       Ed Cowan                               68       India          2011-12

              468       Sam Konstas                          60       India          2024-25

His opening partnership with Usman Khawaja was 89 off 116 balls (UK 28 off 51 balls) – in the first 3 Tests of the series, the total of opening partnerships was 99 in 6 innings at an average of 19.8 (one unbroken). His impact on the world’s #1 Test bowler Jasprit Bumrah was remarkable. In the first 3 Tests of the series, Australia’s first four batters in the order scored 58 runs off 263 balls faced against Bumrah.

Sam scored 34 off 33 balls against Bumrah yesterday – he only scored 2 off the first 18 balls he faced, then scored 32 off the next 15 balls. This included 18 runs (402642) off Bumrah’s 6th over – the most runs scored off a Bumrah over in his 44 Test matches. When he hit his reverse scoop for 6 over slips in the 7th over of the day, it was the first 6 hit off Bumrah for 4562 balls (since Cameron Green did it in the SCG Test in Jan 2021). When he hit Bumrah for his second 6 over long-on, he became only the second player after Jos Buttler to hit two sixes off Bumrah in Tests (Buttler also hit his two in the same innings). Bumrah has conceded only 9 sixes off the 8376 balls that he has bowled to date in Tests. Sam hit two of them off 33 balls!

Bumrah’s opening spell went for 38 runs off 6 overs (only 2 runs off the first 3 overs). Khawaja, who had previously scored 17 off 71 balls in the first 3 Tests, only faced three balls of this spell (4 runs scored). This was undoubtedly a significant factor in freeing up Khawaja’s mind at the crease, as he went on to make 57 off 121 balls – his first 50 in 12 Test innings.