Tahmid had as much to say during a chat with Bangladeshi journalists on Saturday organized by Prime Bank Cricket Club, Tahmid’s team that had a brief spell in the Dhaka Premier League a few years ago. The news of Tahmid being Konstas’ batting coach made headlines in Bangladesh.
Tahmid, speaking via Zoom, said Konstas’ instincts took over on his Test debut. “We were having dinner the other night and he told me he only planned on scooping it out once he got to 150,” Tahmid said. “(Trying to shoot too early) wasn’t part of the plan. But he’s a guy who plays on instinct. He plays with a lot of freedom. He doesn’t really think about the consequences of what people are going for. I think that’s his biggest skill and asset, whereas a lot of players think about the consequences, like, ‘What if I do that?’, ‘What if I go out and play?’, ‘What will the media and press do?’ ‘He’s going to hit me’ said.
“Sam is confident in his game. After playing and missing sixes in the first 10 or 12 balls, he thought the best way to put pressure on Bumrah was to slow down his length. Bumrah threw up a challenge, which was really good for Sam. They didn’t expect a 19-year-old to come out and have that kind of freedom.”
Tahmid, who works at Elevate Cricket Coaching, said he was hardly surprised by Konstas’ choice of shots against bowlers of Bumrah’s class.
“Sam is someone who, as opposed to the traditional approach, hits a bit of a shot and puts people away. It was a bit of a gamble. It paid off well for Australia. Marnus Labuschagne and Steven Smith spoke about how Sam’s innings helped them. “The opportunity to go out and express ourselves was the freedom we lacked in the first three games.”
Tahmid, who first coached while playing in the Yorkshire Premier League in 2013, said he first met Konstas at the age of 14 at Cranbrook School, where he was on a cricket scholarship. “Five years ago I started coaching in Cranbrook, in Sydney’s eastern suburbs, where Sam won a scholarship to go to school. That’s where we first met. He was 14. We had a really good relationship from the start. We maintained a few sessions at the school.”
Tahmid told the story of how he and Konstas’ father made plans for his future in cricket. “One night I was having dinner with his father. We ate Greek food, which is part of their heritage. I put together a little program to help him set his sights on the next stage of his life. NSW ) 16s of cricket in the system began with his technical, mental and tactical game.
“He’s a guy who plays by instinct. He plays with a lot of freedom. He doesn’t really think about the consequences of what people will say if he does something wrong.”
Konstas has strengthened his game over the past 18 months by working with Tahmid to hone his white-ball skills. “He was always a technically sound player growing up. He had the fundamentals of the game, but he was not a very strong player,” Tahmid said. “He didn’t score runs quickly growing up, so he’s been focusing a lot on white-ball cricket over the last 18 months.
“It can be quite difficult, but these days you have to switch formats. Sam plays the Big Bash five or six days before the Boxing Day Test. If you don’t have the ability to switch formats, you fall behind.”
Of course, Konstas didn’t debut scoops, backhits, and ramps overnight. He worked hard to get those shots on net. But Tahmid said executing the same shot in a high-profile match at a packed MCG requires a lot of confidence, something that remains a hallmark of Konstas. “He has been using the reverse ramp for five or six years in the nets. That doesn’t happen by mistake. They need a lot of preparation to go out and perform. And when they get clarity from the captain and the organization, they go out there and express themselves. It helps you do that.
“I think he’s always been a confident guy. He always wanted to be the best player on the field. He used to say to me after training, ‘If you celebrate your centenary tomorrow, what do you want to congratulate me on?’ He even said that before the Boxing Day Test.”
Mohammad Isam is ESPNcricinfo’s Bangladesh correspondent. @isam84
