- Sam Konstas scored strongly against Bumrah in the first innings
- Bumrah was happy to make the teenager pay in the second.
Whatever the outcome of the MCG test, Jasprit ‘Boom Boom’ Bumrah and Sam ‘Kid’ Konstas will head to the SCG level for points in their private fight.
The Indian ace made no secret of his emotions on Sunday as he bowled the Australian debutant with a gem of a delivery that went between bat and pad.
Bumrah enthusiastically urged the crowd to make more noise, parodying Konstas’s gestures when the Australian teenager was playing.
After Konstas distracted Bumrah and the rest of the Indian team in the first innings, playing a succession of ramp shots en route to a crucial 60, he was dismissed for eight this time.
Just as Konstas’s half-century set the tone for the first innings, his cheap dismissal on the opening wicket of the second innings signaled a torrid time ahead for the Australian top-order.
Sam Konstas rocked India during his first innings, plundering a half-century off just 52 balls.
Konstas came second in the second round with Indian master Bumrah.
Fellow Australian batsman Marnus Labuschagne had no doubt there was a reason for Bumrah’s animation as he bowled Konstas.
“I’m pretty sure the young man got a little upset,” Labuschagne said of Bumrah.
“I certainly get angry when I ‘wang’ (shots in training) and get turned back, let alone when I bowl.
“I’d say that had quite a bit to do with it.”
Bumrah’s tussle with the 19-year-old opener sets the stage for an absorbing second round when Konstas plays a Test at home 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 enthralled with Konstas’s attitude.
After scoring 72 and 70 points in the Boxing Day test, Labuschagne said he had been influenced by Konstas’s unorthodox approach.
‘Sam is a very confident young player and he really shows it. I love that about him,” Labuschagne said.
Marnus Labuschagne says Australian debutant upset Bumrah
Labuschagne said Konstas’s unorthodox approach had influenced him and Steve Smith.
“So he’ll love taking part in the contest and he’ll love that Bumrah has fast-tracked it.” I’m sure he’ll be ready for the next entries.
“That first inning, watching Sam hit and the way he did it, I was sitting there with Steve (Smith) and I was saying, ‘We really have to see how we’re doing, because this looks a lot more fun.'”
“It probably made me think about what my best method is, rather than thinking about (technique); it was just more tactical, ‘OK, how am I going to find a way to get through this?’ How am I going to score runs?’