After the Australians had a terrible day at Gqeberha on Wednesday, Sam Konstas sent a timely warning to Test selectors and may be parachuted straight into the third game in South Africa. On day four, the tourists were bowled out for 99 in their first innings and went to stumps at 4-156 in their second. At a crucial point in the game, Konstas knocked at the WACA.
After scoring 440-6, New South Wales had taken a 101-run lead in the first innings thanks to Konstas’s more cautious 71 off 142 deliveries. NSW was in trouble at 155-5 at the start of the second innings, and Konstas answered with a forceful counterattack.
After Australia was bowled out for their lowest Test score in ten years and the tourists were still behind by 170 runs at the end of play on Wednesday, South Africa enforced the follow-on. To win the second Test completely, South Africa has to take six wickets on day five. Beau Webster scored 13 and 8, but Nic Maddison had a terrible Test with scores of 0 and 8. These three players, along with Marnus Labuschagne, will be tested in the third Test next week.
In a X post, Warner said, “Konstas hundred at the wacca today!! Could bat 3 for aus IMO.”
Konstas kept the scoreboard moving steadily from one end as he achieved his fifth first-class century off 136 balls. He quickly shifted gears after reaching the three-figure mark, adding the next fifty in just 31 balls. At a strike rate of 90.42, he hit 15 fours and four sixes to finish undefeated on 151.
Before New South Wales declared their second innings, he and Ryan Hicks enjoyed an uninterrupted sixth-wicket partnership of 107 runs, with Hicks contributing 35 not out. Additionally, it was Konstas’s first red-ball century in fifteen innings, so the timing of the accomplishment was especially noteworthy in light of the current national selection debates. With 334 runs remaining for the hosts, NSW needed seven more wickets to win after reducing Western Australia to 30-3 in their second innings going into the fourth day of the game.
