Steve Waugh Draws Parallels Of His Own Days With Sam Konstas’ Struggles

Australian selectors dropped young batter Sam Konstas from the Test squad following a run of low scores.

Chair of Australia’s selectors George Bailey has expressed sympathy for Sam Konstas after his omission from the Test squad. Former captain Steve Waugh also drew parallels with his own early career.

Konstas was dropped after a tough tour of the West Indies. He made only 50 runs in six innings there. His fate was sealed by a slow start to the Sheffield Shield season, with just one half-century in six innings. Before that, he had scored a hundred for Australia A in India.

The 20-year-old made his debut last summer against India at the MCG. He was then left out in Sri Lanka before being recalled for the Caribbean tour.

“I feel for Sammy [Konstas] because at the moment, if he farts, it’s a headline,” Bailey said at the announcement of Australia’s squad for the first Ashes Test. “There’s a handful of young guys his age playing Shield cricket around the country, and they are all learning and are all going through the journey of becoming the best cricketer they can be, and Sammy is no different – he just happens to doing it under immense scrutiny.”

“We really like him… he’s been in and around the Boxing Day Test, he’s been on subcontinent tours, [and] he’s been on Aussie A tours. So we like the skillset, and [are] confident over the long run, it will continue to build out. It’s not going to be linear – no one’s passage through their career is linear – [but] the message is just to keep it simple: score runs and bat for as long as he can for New South Wales.”

Bailey added, “He’s got a great outlook on life. He remains incredibly upbeat. The scrutiny on him is almost unprecedented on some levels.”

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Steve Waugh’s Empathetic Perspective

Steve Waugh made his Test debut at the same age, also against India at the MCG. He did not score a century until his 27th Test. He was later dropped in favour of his brother Mark before becoming one of Australia’s greatest batters.

“I feel a little bit sorry for Sam Konstas,” Waugh said. “He’s been in and out of the side a bit, and it actually reminds me a bit of myself when I first started playing for Australia. Not fully confident of being in the side, and up and down, and form not quite there. So he’s probably lacking a bit of confidence.”

“[My advice to Konstas would be] not to listen to everybody. Just trust one or two people around you. Go back to basics. At the end of the day, it’s really hard to learn how to play Test cricket while you’re playing Test cricket, and that’s what happened to me for a few years. I wasn’t really that finished product. I’d go back to Shield cricket, try and build some long innings, bat for as long as you can, and just get to know your game really well. And then [when] you walk out to play for Australia, you’re confident in what you’re doing.”

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“I think, at the moment, he’s guessing how he’s meant to play. There’s a lot of expectations, so he’s probably not playing with a clear mind.”

Konstas has potentially three more Shield games before the BBL starts. Bailey said he would also be considered for the Prime Minister’s XI and Australia A fixtures.