Sam Konstas has been dropped from Australia’s lineup for their first Test in Sri Lanka, with Travis Head taking his place.
Konstas made his Test debut in the Boxing Day Test against India in Melbourne and the 19-year-old attracted attention for his audacious attacking shots against Jasprit Bumrah. He attempted a reverse scoop against the seamer in the third over, before successfully executing one in the seventh.
Travis Head replaces Sam Konstas in first Sri Lanka Test
However, Head will partner Usman Khawaja instead as selectors hope his spin-playing prowess is more suitable to open at Galle. Head averages 65.4 across four Tests in Sri Lanka while also boasting an average of 46.5 in India, where he replaced David Warner as opener halfway through the most recent series.
When opening, he averaged 55.8 in the remaining two-and-a-half Test matches, passing 30 in four out of five of his innings with a high score of 90. He also maintained his aggression at the top of the order, taking the fight to India’s spinners. Head will hope to continue this strong form in Asia against the likes of Prabath Jayasuriya and Nishan Peiris.
Australian captain Steve Smith told cricket.com.au: "Trav will go to the top, outside of that I think it will be pretty stable. I don't see it being a great deal of change from that.
"The selectors liked what they saw in India when he [Head] had that opportunity. He got after the new ball, scored quickly and put the pressure on them straight away so I guess similar thinking here."
Konstas, on the other hand, has never played in Asia and struggled against Ravindra Jadeja in the fourth Test at the MCG. Furthermore, despite his fireworks against Jasprit Bumrah and the rest of India’s seam attack, Konstas failed to deliver consistent runs. His 62 on debut was his only half-century in four innings and he averaged just 28.25 as Australia won the Border-Gavaskar Trophy for the first time since 2015.
There is unlikely to be much pace in the surface for Konstas to use to his advantage and more conventional shots will be required on a more unpredictable track. Australia will be wary of denting the teenager’s confidence, especially before their crucial WTC final clash against South Africa, so preferring Head’s experience could be the safer option.
Further down the order, left arm off-spinner Matthew Kuhnemann has been declared fit, despite dislocating his thumb in the Big Bash League two weeks ago.
Where does this leave Konstas?
Konstas had been brought into the Australian side to replace Nathan McSweeney, who had failed to impress in the opening three Tests against India. In just 13 first-class matches, he scored two centuries and four fifties in the Sheffield Shield.
Since his performances in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy, Konstas has been earmarked as Australia’s long-term solution to their lack of a consistent opener. His fearlessness and aggression exemplifies modern-day Test cricket and he has plenty of time to refine his game.
Australia have opted for a more conventional middle-order, with Josh Inglis beating out Cooper Connolly make his Test debut. It is unlikely Konstas will feature in this series, their final red-ball action before the World Test Championship final in June.
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The opener will be hoping to re-establish himself in the side that travels to Lords, where his batting style is more suited to the seam-friendly English pitches, with Head returning to his role as a destructive middle-order enforcer. However, this move does raise questions about Konstas’ long-term future as an opener in Asia.
Given that Australia have already qualified for the World Test Championship final, this was an ideal opportunity for Konstas to gain some experience of playing in the subcontinent. The next WTC cycle will feature a trip to India, and Australia will need to figure out a long-term solution to their opener problem, especially with Khawaja coming towards the end of his career.
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