“Not really….”: Konstas on if he spends time watching Bumrah videos ahead of debut at MCG

Melbourne [Australia], December 23 (ANI): Ahead of the Boxing Day Test and the fourth match of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy against India, uncapped Australian batting sensation Sam Konstas said that he is “trying to be in the moment” and opened up about his plans against Indian pace spearhead Jasprit Bumrah.

Konstas, the U19 batting sensation for Australia, will face perhaps the biggest Test of his young and promising career so far as he prepares to take on an Indian bowling attack led by Bumrah during the highly-anticipated Boxing Day Test starting from December 26 onwards. The 19-year-old is not too phased by all the talks about him facing the dangerous bowler, who has taken 21 scalps so far and is focusing on being in the present and enjoying what lies ahead of him.

“Nah, not really (if he watches Bumrah’s videos). I have watched them quite a bit, but just trying to be in the moment and hopefully, I get the opportunity on Boxing Day. I do (have plans to tackle Bumrah), I am not going to say what it is, but just trying to put pressure back on the bowlers,” said Konstas during the pre-match presser.

Konstas, who scored 92 in four innings, including a match-winning 73* against India A for Australia A ahead of the series, said that he had learnt a lot from facing India A bowlers.

“Yeah, I learned a lot, challenging myself with the Indian A team and learning from great mentors in Aussie A stuff. So, hopefully, I get the opportunity,” he said.

Konstas also said that he had his conversations with his to-be-opening partner Usman Khawaja and called him a “legend of the game”, hoping for a chance to experience batting with him.

The youngster expressed happiness at finally getting to play at the highest level after all the sacrifices made by his family, particularly his parents, who would be coming to watch him play. He is focusing on backing himself well and staying relaxed.

“It is special (to have been selected to play for Australia). The sacrifices they (parents) made, taking me to the games. Experiencing the highs and the lows. Just to give back to them is a really special moment. I think it is jjust another day for me. Obviously, it is a bit more special. I have got my parents coming. Pretty simple, just back myself,” he added.

So far, Konstas’ batting style has drawn comparisons with legendary Australian all-rounder Shane Watson. While Konstas does not look at them so much, he took it as a compliment. I do not look through too much on social media, but I will take it as a compliment,” he said.

The 19-year-old is also pretty happy to have great mentors in skipper Pat Cummins and Steve Smith in the Australian team. He also revealed that he had a chat with Indian opener KL Rahul as well as both teams prepare for the game.

“I think Pat Cummins and the group have welcomed me in, so I feel like a family. A dream come true and hopefully get to represent my country. I think as a kid, I have always dreamt of it. I think for me, trying to keep it as simple as possible, get my prep well, and see what happens. It (the transition to the Australian side) has happened really quickly, to be honest. I was not too phased about it, but I feel like I am a pretty relaxed person,” he signed off.

Konstas played a vital role in Australia’s ICC U19 World Cup 2024 triumph, scoring 191 runs in seven innings at an average of 27.28, including a century. He also featured in a two-match series between Australia A and India A ahead of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy, scoring 92 runs in four innings, highlighted by a match-winning 73*. In the warm-up pink-ball game against India, he stamped his authority with a classy 107 off 97 balls against a formidable Indian attack.

In the ongoing Sheffield Shield season, Konstas is the fifth-highest run-getter with 471 runs in five matches at an average of 58.87, including two centuries and a fifty, with a best score of 152.

Australia squad: Pat Cummins (c), Sean Abbott, Scott Boland, Alex Carey, Travis Head (vc), Josh Inglis, Usman Khawaja, Sam Konstas, Marnus Labuschagne, Nathan Lyon, Mitchell Marsh, Jhye Richardson, Steve Smith (vc), Mitchell Starc, Beau Webster

India squad: Rohit Sharma (c), Jasprit Bumrah (vc), Yashasvi Jaiswal, KL Rahul, Abhimanyu Easwaran, Devdutt Padikkal, Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Rishabh Pant, Sarfaraz Khan, Dhruv Jurel, Ravichandran Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Mohammed Siraj, Akash Deep, Prasidh Krishna, Harshit Rana, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Washington Sundar. Reserves: Mukesh Kumar, Navdeep Saini, Khaleel Ahmed, Yash Dayal.