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Find your Sport Nation frequencyWhateley: My unorthodox strategy for Konstas v Marnus debate
Gerard Whateley • May 14th, 2025 2:52 pm
Australia unveiled its squad for the World Test championship that contained no surprises.
But it raises questions of what the XI is going to look like on a bowling front. It will either be Hazlewood or Boland who will be paired with Cummins and Starc.
I would have Boland, but Hazlewood is a perfectly defendable decision.
The questions around the batting; there are seven batters and six spots, Konstas, Labuschagne, Smith, Khawaja, Head, Green and Webster. Green would play as a specialist batter. He's not ready to bowl.
If you want an all-rounder, that means Webster has to stay.
Four weeks away from day one at Lord's with the mace up for grabs, do you open with Konstas or Labuschagne in the grand final of Test cricket?
Clearly in the West Indies Konstas should be opening for Australia. He needs the three-Test experience to have him ready and fully tested for the Ashes where you would imagine he's opening the batting in the first Test.
But for the one out Test match - it's a grand final; if you had to have your last dollar on which batter is more likely to make runs, would it be Konstas or Labuschagne?
Konstas is the future, Labuschagne has had mediocre results across the past couple of years, but if you're having your last dollar on, then it's Labuschagne.
It's an unorthodox strategy, having never done it before, to do it in the Grand Final, it's got a bit of Malcolm Blight about it.
I don't often think cricket is that imaginative, but Khawaja, Labuschagne, Smith, Green, Head and Webster is more likely than Khawaja and Konstas with Labuschagne out, Green, Smith, Head and Webster from there.
Who makes runs against the South Africa? Because that's the threat. South Africa's fast bowlers with the new ball at Lord's - that's the threat. Which way would you go?
Konstas is the future; he's my long term opener for 14-15 years. He's opening in the first Test in the West Indies, but in the one off Test match for the mace, when it's all up for grabs, which way are you going?
That's the question. Australia has four weeks to answer.
