Contenders for the second opening spot in Australia's Ashes XI, Sam Konstas and Nathan McSweeney both fell cheaply in their Sheffield Shield matches this week.
Sam Konstas and Nathan McSweeney fail in opening Sheffield round
New South Wales opener Konstas was out for four before rain stopped play at the WACA on day one of the fixture. He was trapped lbw by Western Australia's Joel Paris, as New South Wales were reduced to 23-3.
Match 3, Western Australia vs New South Wales
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Konstas was among those who impressed in Australia A's recent series against India A. He scored a century in the first Test match before being dismissed for 49 in the second innings of the second game. Those innings came off the back of a Test tour to the Caribbean with the senior Australia side, in which he was included in their XI for the first time since his debut series against India earlier in the year. However, Konstas failed to nail down his spot as Usman Khawaja's partner, recording two ducks and a high score of 25 from six innings.
Other hopeful to take that spot for the Ashes series, McSweeney, also endured a tough outing for South Australia. He was out for a 21-ball duck against Victoria in Adelaide, caught behind by Peter Handscomb off Mitchell Perry. Opener Henry Hunt and No.5 Jake Lehmann went on to rescue the innings from disaster, both scoring centuries.
Match 1, South Australia vs Victoria
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McSweeney also impressed during the A tour of India. After a tough first outing where he was dismissed for 1, he went on to pass 50 twice in the second game. He was out for 74 in the first innings and finished unbeaten on 85 in the second. McSweeney hasn't played a Test match since his brief run in the Australia Test side in the first half of the India series last year. He was dropped after the Brisbane Test, having averaged 14.40 across the first three games.
Other contenders for a spot in Australia's Ashes batting order also endured tough outings this week. Kurtis Patterson fell for eight as part of the New South Wales top-order collapse. Of those who boosted their credentials, Tasmania opener Jake Weatherald scored 67 from 99 against Queensland, while Lehmann's century for South Australia is his fourth century in four consecutive Shield games since last season.
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