Australia cricket team head coach Andrew McDonald hasn’t ruled out the possibility of Sam Konstas opening the innings for the team in the Ashes. The 19-year-old witnessed multiple failures in the recently concluded Test series against West Indies, managing to score just 50 runs in 3 Tests. Despite his consistent failures, Konstas has been handed yet another chance to retain his spot in the Ashes.
Sam Konstas to continue as Australia’s opener?
Speaking to reporters after the WI vs AUS 3rd Test, the Australian head coach said that Konstas’ failures in West Indies will not impact his career. McDonlad said that the plan was to get the youngster to perform in the upcoming Sheffield Shield matches in order to get him ready for the Ashes. It is pertinent to point out that Konstas recorded the lowest average (8.33) by an Australian opener in West Indies since 1984.
“This period of time for any player is a, ‘Decompress, do you own reflections’, then we get together and plan the winter for him and get him where he needs to be for Shield cricket. There’s no doubt he’s got something to work on, like all our players. I’m not going to expose what they are because that’s a declaration to the opposition,” the Australian head coach said.
Konstas made his debut in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy against India in December 2024. In 10 innings that he has played so far, the opener has only managed to score 163 runs at an average of 16.30, including a highest score of 60. However, Australia head coach McDonald firmly believes that Konstas is a promising talent who has a secure position in Australia’s XI, provided he makes the necessary changes to his technique.
“Sometimes you feel you get it right, other times you make changes mid-series, but we’re open to all options. We see him as a player we will be using going forward, it’s just a matter of when. Right now, he is juggling his aggressive nature, his technique and the way he wants to go about playing. When you see a player in work at the nets and you gather information, we believe he has got more layers than just being that ultra-aggressive disruptor at the top of the order,” McDonald added.
Australia have been on the hunt for a new opener ever since the departure of David Warner. While Travis Head was tried as an opener in the series against Sri Lanka earlier this year, he was moved back to the middle-order for the WTC final and the series against West Indies.
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