Australia's Sam Konstas bats during play on the first day of the fourth cricket test between Australia and India at the Melbourne Cricket Ground, Melbourne, Australia, Thursday, Dec. 26, 2024. Photo: AP/Asanka Brendon Ratnayake Australia's Sam Konstas bats during play on the first day of the fourth cricket test between Australia and India at the Melbourne Cricket Ground, Melbourne, Australia, Thursday, Dec. 26, 2024. Photo: AP/Asanka Brendon Ratnayake Sam Konstas lit up the Melbourne Cricket Ground with a stunning display on his debut on the opening day of the fourth Test between India and Australia. (Day 1 Blog | Full Coverage | More Cricket News)mwplay888
The 19-year-old raced to his half-century in only 52 balls becoming the youngest Australian in more than seven decades to score a fifty.
Enroute his half-century, Konstas put up a thrilling exhibition of modern day cricketing shots including scoops and reverse ramps. He was especially severe on Jasprit Bumrah, India's pace spearhead and the currently top-ranked Test bowler in the world.
ICC Test Rankings: Jasprit Bumrah Equals R Ashwin For Joint-Highest Rating Points By Indian BowlerEarlier when Konstas recieved the Baggy Green, he became the fourth youngest player to play Test cricket for Australia. He is also the youngest specialist batter to debut for Australia in more than 70 years.
Konstas, on his debut, took the strike first up against Bumrah ahead of his opening partner Usman Khawaja. Nerves got the better of him early on as his pokes towards the ball did not meet the bat. Konstas attempted an audacious reverse ramp off Bumrah on just the 11th ball he faced. Although he missed it and one more similar attempt soon, it was a sign of what was to come.
The first match of the final round of group matches took place between Korea and Malaysia and resulted in a 3-3 draw. The splitting of points confirmed Korea's qualification to the semifinal. The draw also ensured that Pakistan would finish second in the group regardless of their result in their last group match against India.
The India-Pakistan hockey rivalry has lost its sheen in recent times. Hockey in Pakistan has been in a freefall for the last decade or so while Indians have made a tremendous comeback in the same time period. The two countries used to rule world hockey at one point and the seeds for it were sown during the British rule in India.
After a slow start, Konstas took Bumrah to task in the seventh over of the morning.
He scooped the first ball off the over for a four and then reverse scooped the next one to become the first player in almost four years to hit Bumrah for a six in Test cricket. He hit another reverse ramp to get another boundary on the fifth and the over was taken for 14 runs.
In the 11th over, Konstas once again took Bumrah to the cleaners hitting a total of 18 runs. He smashed the Indian pace spearhead for a four on the first ball before launching him for a six on the fourth. A four on the fifth ball and two doubles on the third and last delivery made it a massive over for Bumrah, something that the elite Indian fast bowler is not used to.
no deposit spinsEventuallymwplay888, Ravindra Jadeja pinned Konstas in front of wickets to dismiss the youngster for 62 from 65 balls. He hit six fours and two sixes, both off Bumrah. In fact, he has now joined Jos Buttler in the elite list of batters to have hit two sixes off Bumrah in a Test innings.
