Once Sam Konstas entered the fray, the spice levels of the five-match Border-Gavaskar Trophy went up a notch. The 18-year-old was constantly in the ears of the Indian batters and faced some verbal volleys from the Indian fielders.
While it intrigued and fascinated Melbourne, it became ugly in Sydney when the rookie failed to save the fall of a wicket on day one.
Jasprit Bumrah got Usman Khawaja off the last ball after sharing a few words with Konstas. After the wicket, Bumrah grunted an extravagant roar, aimed at the 18-year-old at the non-striker's end.
However, former Australian pacer Mitchell Johnson thought that India took the 'two vs 11' mentality to heart but failed to give the Australian newcomers some nightmares.
"The Indian side came out with a mindset that it was 'two against 11' out in the middle, trying to make the Aussie batters feel isolated and put pressure upon them," Johnson wrote in his column for The Nightly.
"The focus was not just on testing technical skills but also on challenging mental toughness. In Test cricket, it's crucial to create that environment, but their efforts didn't really pay off," he added.
Konstas taking on Bumrah in a verbal volley did not earn him applause, as Johnson reckoned it played against Australia.
"I respect what Konstas was trying to do by being supportive of his teammate, but it was the wrong time for that kind of interaction. By that late stage of the day, there could only be one winner," Johnson wrote.
Not just that, the former Australian pacer also felt that the seniors failed the 18-year-old by not giving him enough advice about how one could handle that situation. Konstas, however, had a series to remember, with scores of 60, 8, 23 and 22, making a key difference to Australia at the top of the order.
"That gives some insight as to how newcomers join the squad and need leaders from the previous core to take on different types of situations, inside the gameplay flow," added Johnson.
Konstas supported Australia in its successful BGT series for the first time in a dozen years.
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