Veteran Australian off-spinner Nathan Lyon has shared that young Sam Konstas felt no nerves before his Test debut against India at the packed Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG) on Thursday, December 26. During a pre-match interaction, Lyon said that Konstas told him and Mitchell Starc that he was feeling as if he was going to play in a grade game as well.

During an interaction with ABC Sport, Lyon praised Konstas, saying, “Yeah, it’s pretty amazing, but, uh, me and Starcy were warming up out here yesterday before the game, before the baggy presentation. He came up and sat down next to both of us and said, ‘Lads, when do you reckon the nerves are gonna kick in?’ I’m like—he goes, ‘This honestly just feels like a grade game.’ So I said, ‘I don’t know what game you play with 90,000 people there, but um.’ That just shows how naive he is in my eyes.”

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While saying Sam Konstas’ debut Test knock as pretty special, Lyon added that the batter is probably too young and naive to understand the
magnitude of what he had done on Day 1 of the Boxing Day Test.

“I think that’s just being 19 and a little bit naive. He’s got great energy. I don’t think he really understands the enormity of the Boxing Day Test match or the significance of the Baggy Green just yet. You saw yesterday, though—he played a pretty special knock there. But yeah, it’s pretty special, though a long way to go,” he concluded.