How Sam Konstas, Jake Fraser-McGurk can learn from Waugh, Gilchrist, to revive careers

Jake Fraser-McGurk and Sam Konstas were batting wonder boys who have free-falled back to earth. This is what went wrong, and how greats Steve Waugh and Adam Gilchrist can save them.

Steve Waugh was tagged Boy Wonder when he first surged into mainstream cricket but after a few failures his teammates mischievously reshaped it to Boy Blunder.

They were having a bit of fun but the message was clear – when you are a young player for whom reputation precedes results, life is full of extremes.

The rating dial moves swiftly and mercilessly. It’s unnerving.

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Jake Fraser-McGurk has had a long run of poor form and diminshed returns. Picture: AFP

One minute Jake Fraser-McGurk is Australia’s very own rampaging Rooster, the next he’s a feather duster who cannot buy a run and is discarded from the Australian T20 team after one painful-to-watch innings in the West Indies.

One minute Sam Konstas is ramping Jasprit Bumrah over slips, a few months later he is averaging 8.33 in the West Indies and set to be dropped from the Test team.

Jake Fraser-McGurk Sam Konstas dismissals

The similarity – and the challenge – for Konstas and Fraser-McGurk is they still look like batsmen scrambling under a searing spotlight to work out who they are. What works. What doesn’t.

They may be able to hit a ball from Melbourne to Mildura but can they defend a swinging ball? Do they have a second and third gear? Is there fibre within the flash?

Ian Healy senses the two young batsmen have different problems and different solutions.

“There is no question Sam is good enough but he is not watching the ball,’’ Healy told this masthead.

Sam Konstas walks off the field dismissed in the Test series against the West Indies, where he averaged 8.33. Picture: AFP

“When you are not watching the ball your bad habits are very obvious. In his Test career he has tried batting outside off stump, middle and leg. He’s stop watching the ball because his mind’s eye is where his front pad is, where he is standing …

“Top order batsmen (in Tests) should be basing everything on defence – it’s just so hard to bat until the ball is 30 overs old these days. There has been action in the game to liven up wickets. Balls have been lacred up. It’s tough.’’

Sam Konstas and Jake Fraser-McGurk: Aussie cricket wonder boys in crisis.

Fraser-McGurk?

“He just needs to hit his first 10 scoring shots on the ground. There was a great connection in Adam Gilchrist’s career between his big scores and when he hit the first 20 balls along the ground. Jake can learn from that. He hits it in the air too early.’’

Every now and then Test cricket throws up a freak like Sachin Tendulkar who made his Test debut at 16 and played for two decades.

But most youngsters have growing pains. Steve Waugh got dropped and – in a lesson to Konstas and Fraser-McGurk – thought “when I get back I am going to play my way and not the way everyone wants me to.’’

He did just that and found a peace of mind currently out of reach of Australia’s two out of form batting prodigies.

Originally published as How Sam Konstas, Jake Fraser-McGurk can learn from Waugh, Gilchrist, to revive careers