Last Updated on 4 weeks ago by Charbel Coorey
Brad Haddin, who was announced as the new coach of New South Wales this week, has made it his mission to get the best out of Sam Konstas.
The 20-year-old finished the 2025/26 Sheffield Shield season with 660 runs at 33.00 in ten matches. It was a tough season overall for the batters in Shield cricket, with all the top nine runscorers averaging under 40.
However, Konstas’ season did promise a lot more given the starts he made. The opener finished the season with eight consecutive scores between 25 and 45.
Brad Haddin admits Sam Konstas was picked for Test cricket too early, but backs him to deliver
Haddin believes there were positive signs from Konstas’ campaign. While all the starts may be cause for frustration, the fact the opener was able to get through the initial stages against the new ball is reason for optimism.
“He may have got thrown in there (into Test cricket) too early and there’s parts of his game that I’m really impressed with,” Haddin said, as quoted by CODE Sports.
“I had a look at his season recently and there’s been a lot of talk about where his game was at, but he got a start in every innings this summer. That’s the hardest time to bat.”
Konstas made an incredible start to Test cricket, hitting an audacious 60 against India on Boxing Day in 2024. It was lean pickings thereafter, with just 103 runs in his remaining nine innings in Tests. However, Haddin believes Konstas can replicate what he’s achieved at the lower levels.
“Sam, looking at what he’s done in his career, he’s a hundred scorer everywhere (in every grade and age group). Everywhere he’s gone, he has been a hundred scorer,” Haddin said.
“Once he starts to understand where his game’s at and under pressure, look out, the kid can play.
“If I have a look at this playing group, I think we’ve got an opportunity here to find some generational talent.
“We’ve seen NSW in the past with our bowlers, David (Warner’s) just gone, Steve Smith … I think we’ve got the opportunity now to start to find a couple more of those players. And that excites me about this group.”
New South Wales missed out on the Sheffield Shield Final, finishing second-last in a disappointing campaign. Victoria and South Australia will contest the final, which begins on March 26 at Junction Oval.
