A run machine being compared to Ricky Ponting: Meet Sam Konstas

The runs. The sheer number of runs. More than 5000 of them in Sydney grade and Sheffield Shield cricket, starting from the age of 14. Sam Konstas, now 19, has racked up centuries with monotonous regularity over the past five summers, a dream start to a career in which the most important currency a batter deals in is runs.

Konstas’ work with willow in hand has rendered discussions of him being the “next big thing” almost moot. There is no longer any need to talk about him. All the decision-makers in NSW and Australian cricket have to do is watch.

From public to private: Sam Konstas was keen to face experienced cricketers in Premier Cricket.Credit: Getty Images

While Konstas’s name has been uttered in hushed tones for years, it is the recent comparisons to Ricky Ponting, a modern-day great of the game, that are more telling.

The comparisons are so strong, he has earned a new nickname – whereas Ponting was known as “Punter”, due to his love of the punt, the new moniker being loosely bandied around NSW cricket circles for Konstas is “Pinter” … a pint-sized Punter.

The NSW youngster has already emulated one of Punter’s feats, becoming the youngest player since the former Australian captain to score two Sheffield Shield centuries in the same match, which Ponting achieved in 1993.

And still, the runs have kept coming. Just last week, Konstas plundered 107 runs off 97 balls for the Prime Minister’s XI against a near full-strength Indian bowling attack.

With Australia’s Test team under pressure following a poor top-order batting display in Perth, suddenly there is a potential bolter for a baggy green being talked about this summer – the kid with the Greek surname; the one who went to Sydney’s prestigious Cranbrook school; the one being mentored by former Test all-rounder Shane Watson after a chance meeting at the nets.

Konstas is the name on everyone’s lips because he has demonstrated an insatiable appetite for runs at all levels, coupled with a calm attitude and tenacious work ethic.

Most of the time, young prospects fizzle out and never play professional cricket. A small percentage go on to earn a living from the game.

But if Konstas does walk out to bat in a Test this summer, those close to him are adamant he will be ready.

“I really want the chance,” Konstas said on Wednesday about the prospect of a Test debut. “I love being challenged and hopefully that can happen soon.”

A new talent emerges

Konstas was born at St George Hospital 20 days after England’s famous series win over Australia in the 2005 Ashes. He grew up in Sydney’s southern suburbs and still lives in Hurstville on the street adjacent to the oval where St George’s first-grade side plays and where the likes of Sir Donald Bradman, Bill O’Reilly and Arthur Morris played their club cricket.

“I want to play at Hurstville Oval one day and for St George,” a nine-year-old Konstas, already making an impression with bat and ball, told the St George & Sutherland Shire Leader in 2015.

Sam Konstas poses for a photo as a nine-year-old at Hurstville Oval.Credit: Chris Lane

The story goes on to say: “Sam’s best scores are 116, 85 not out and 82 not out. He also collected five wickets.”

Sam’s twin, Johnny, and older brother Billy all played for the Kingsgrove Cricket Club, but it was at the home they shared with their parents – Pamela and Jim, who both have Greek heritage, hailing from Patras and Kalamata, respectively – that they developed their passion for the game during fierce backyard battles.

Sam Konstas at the SCG this week. Credit: Kate Geraghty

The rumours soon started of a young could-be star dominating the junior ranks. Occasionally, such talk will make its way to the state and national set-ups, but that does not normally happen until the player is in their late teens, entrenched in a state program, or performing well in first grade.

NSW captain Moises Henriques, who debuted for the Blues when Konstas was not even four months old, experienced it first-hand and is well placed to comment on how it feels to be talked about as an emerging talent.

The Herald’s Alex Brown wrote in 2005 of Henriques: “Perhaps only Michael Clarke can claim to have encountered similar levels of hype at such a young age in recent years.”

Henriques first met Konstas when the youngster was nine, and he heard about his batting prowess when he was 14.

“We actually met a long time ago,” Henriques, now Konstas’ NSW skipper, said. “He showed me a photo of us at Hurstville Oval, and then I recognised him. He was very familiar because he watched our first-grade team a lot. I think I gave him some gloves.

“Hearing about a 14-year-old player, though, is not very common.”

The whispers got louder. It was because Konstas had such a sound technique. It was because the other dads could see their own sons weren’t in the same class as him. But, mostly, it was because of the runs.

Across stints with St. George, Eastern Suburbs and more recently Sutherland, Konstas has shown he is a run machine and a century-maker.

From 126 matches, across grades one to five, plus under-16 (Green Shield) and under-21 matches (Poidevin Gray Shield), Konstas has amassed 4609 runs at the impressive average of 44.7.

The story of Konstas making four centuries in an eight-day period in January 2021 is etched in grade-cricket folklore, even if records show it was actually over 11 days.

Sam Konstas (far right) poses for a photo with Cranbrook schoolmates for a story in the AFR in 2023. Credit: Louise Kennerley

He reached triple figures in a first-grade match at the age of 17 years and 48 days. His century on Sunday in Canberra was his 23rd since 2019.

His defection from St George to Sutherland in 2022 was big news, not least because of the rivalry between the clubs. But it was also because of the person who had convinced him to make the jump – former Test all-rounder Watson.

School cricket was becoming too easy for Konstas and he needed a fresh challenge.

In his last five matches for Cranbrook, before he was even in year 12, he made scores of 51, 100 not out, 202 not out, 94 and 109.

“He’s the most polite young man I’ve probably ever encountered, to be honest,” said Sutherland club official Tom Iceton. “Part of that comes from his mentor, who’s the most polite international player I’ve ever dealt with. Watto is a champion.”

Watson laughs about the coup to lure Konstas from St George to Sutherland, but ultimately, it was because a first-grade spot was up for grabs.

Sam Konstas of the PM’s XI is pictured with Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese before day one of the tour match.Credit: Getty Images

“That was a perfect storm in a way for Sam to play first grade and not for his school,” Watson said. “Sutherland was eager to provide a spot for him.”

More than two decades ago, Watson was a barrel-chested Queensland all-rounder with blond hair who’d also been touted as “the next big thing” in Australian cricket. Watson, like Henriques, knows a good young player when he sees one.

He was having a quiet net session near Cranbrook’s junior school – where his son Will is a student – when he noticed a boy with curly brown hair running over.

“I was in a PE lesson, and I was like to my teacher, ‘That’s Shane Watson. Can I talk to him?’ She let me go,” Konstas said. “I was just trying to get advice from him. I was holding his bats and being a bit of a nuffie.

“Ever since that, he’s taken me under his wing.”

Watson adds: “The person who I was with said, ‘Oh, that’s Sam Konstas, the young gun who scores runs for fun.’

Sam Konstas.Credit: Kate Geraghty

“The first thing that stuck out to me was how polite he was and how single-minded he is to be the best cricketer he can be. I’ve been around a lot of cricketers, and he really stood out. He wants to go to the end of the earth to be as good as he can. When you meet someone like that, you really want to help them.

“Phillip Hughes … from a young age, everything you heard was he knew how to score runs. Sam’s in that category.”

Watson’s wife Lee, a former Fox Sports presenter, is Konstas’ manager. His personal batting coach is Tahmid Islam, a former Bangladeshi first-class player.

Konstas’ brother, Billy, is his physiotherapist.

In November last year, Watson presented Konstas with his baggy blue cap on Sheffield Shield debut for NSW. The Greek Herald even covered the story, as well as his latest knock in Canberra.

Partnership: Sam Konstas receives his NSW cap before his Shield debut last year.Credit: Getty Images

“I remember thinking after his first training session with us that he’s just passing through at this level, rather than a 100 Sheffield Shield games type of guy,” Henriques said.

“I felt like it was a little bit more like Phil Hughes or Steve Smith … you know, someone who’s just passing through for a little while until they learn enough to go and play for Australia.”

Playing with a straight bat

Now to the technique.

One noticeable trait is that Konstas likes to play with the full face of the bat and hit the ball down the ground. That seems self-evident, but often with gaps at cover or mid-wicket, batsmen can get sucked into playing more square of the wicket than they need to with runs there for the taking.

The Kookaburra stickers on Konstas’ bat are similar to the ones Ricky Ponting had in his heyday. It is an appealing aesthetic for nostalgic Test cricket purists.

There are some imperfections, of course, like facing the ball that swings in, but Konstas has shown he’s an adept problem-solver.

“I remember watching him batting in the nets, and I was impressed with how long his bat stayed straight for,” Henriques said. “I was like, ‘Oh wow, his Kookaburra seems really wide.’ That’s a great skill to have as an opening batsman.”

Konstas also picks up the length of short balls quickly, allowing him to play crisp cross-bat shots.

The future is bright for Konstas, but he is aware nothing will be handed to him. He was selected for Australia A and was probably one big score away from being a genuine chance of a Test debut but did not fire when it mattered, making scores of 0, 16 and 3.

A second-innings knock of 73 not out at the MCG was too little too late as South Australia’s Nathan McSweeney was given the nod for the opening Test in Perth.

Henriques and Watson have spoken to Konstas about managing the highs and lows of the sport.

“I felt like I rode my failures a bit too hard,” Henriques said. “The only thing that could hold him back is how he reacts to failure. There’s going to be no worries about what he’s capable of because I think it’s pretty amazing.

“I just see a kid who’s quite self-assured without being arrogant. He’s very comfortable in his skin. He’s comfortable to ask questions and learn. He’s very happy to do the hard work. He just loves the game.

“The hundred in Canberra will only help his confidence.”

But Konstas, who stays away from social media, is the only one who controls what happens on the pitch. And that’s the only place where it all matters if he’s going to truly live up to the hype.

“He’s happy to be guided by people he trusts around him,” Watson said. “He knows how to not let the outside noise get in his way.”

With Billie Eder

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