Former Australia skipper Allan Border has suggested that opener Sam Konstas shelve "the bloody ramp shot" ahead of the Ashes.
Border appeared on the SENQ Breakfast radio show on Wednesday (October 22), alongside Corey Parker and former Australia keeper Ian Healy.
Asked about whether he was concerned about the batting depth for Australia at the top of the order, the 1987 World Cup-winning captain said, “A little bit, but I think it’s amazing how players do come through. [Jake] Weatherald’s a perfect example. He’s been sort of treading water a little bit and I think SACA (South Australia Cricket Association) let him go.
“Now he’s scoring runs. He’s had a change of attitude, for whatever reason he’s worked it out as he’s matured. Maybe the player(s) now, the careers are sort of 25 to 35 [years old] type-thing, rather than 20 to 30. I think there’s been a shift, you know, that players are maturing later. So therefore we won’t see too many of the young blokes like [Sam] Konstas getting a run because they’re just not quite ready at that age.
Also read: 0 (21) & 4 (25): Australia Ashes top-order contenders fall cheaply on Sheffield Shield opening day
Border: I've only ever seen Konstas play a ramp shot
“Sam Konstas, I’ve only ever seen him play a ramp shot,” Border added. “Can he cover drive, or anything like that? I don’t know. It’s all there, but I just haven’t seen any … I’ve seen him constantly try and play this bloody ramp shot. Okay, it’s a handy shot to have in the kit bag, but I’d leave it there for a while until I got a few on the board first.”
Konstas made a mark on Test debut when he took on Jasprit Bumrah on Boxing Day last year, with a series of ramps and reverse-ramps on his way to a rollicking half-century. His form has since dropped off though, with a particularly poor tour of the West Indies earlier this year; Konstas made 50 runs in six innings.
'He's good enough from what I'm hearing, but I haven't seen it yet'
“It’s hard to tell people how to bat, specifically,” Border said by way of advice for Konstas. “But I’d be saying, ‘Look, just shelve the ramp shot.’ Just give yourself a chance to get yourself in, just conventionally playing, and as your innings develops, yes, you play however you want to.
“There’s lots of ways to make Test match runs, you don’t have to play the ramp shot. He’s good enough from what I’m hearing, but I just haven’t seen it yet. That’s just me.”
Read more: Konstas, Labuschagne and beyond: Eleven batters in the race to open for Australia in the Ashes
Border also chipped in on who his choice to open the innings for Australia would be for the Ashes: “No one’s really knocking the door down apart from [Marnus] Labuschagne. He’s not really listed as an opener … They might ask him to open, and if he’s prepared to do it he could get through. He’s got the technique and the runs on the board this year to do the job for us, but I just get the feeling he’s going to end up at No.3 and we just need to find some more top-order players.
“I think Usman [Khawaja]’s a lock-in for the first couple of Tests at least, and then I’d be going [Matt] Renshaw. He’s back in the one-day team and he’s been scoring runs consistently for the last couple of years … red-ball, white-ball, so … and he’s been there, done that.
“Weatherald’s been doing a good job as well. He’s scored some runs this year, but I don’t know, it’s a tough one because the top three is very very important.”
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