After his 152 in Brisbane, England will be wary of the threat Travis Head presents (Photo - Cricket Australia).
He may have gotten time to reflect on his maiden Ashes century, but Travis Head is still more rapt with what lies ahead for himself and his Australian side.
Head seized control of the first Ashes Test in the Gabba last week, plundering England all over the ground on days two and three to end with a blistering 152 off 148 balls. Although he could’ve been excused for basking in such a miraculous achievement, the South Australian is keen to consolidate in Adelaide this week.
“It was nice to contribute so early in the series and hopefully that trends into a great couple of weeks, it’s certainly a great start,” he said.
“The important part is now we get another opportunity in a couple of days’ time, and we get to push forward our advantage.”
Without perennial English bowling legends in Stuart Broad and James Anderson, Head looked free and busy when at the crease. After Broad got the best of him by going around the wicket in the recent 2019 England Ashes series, Head managed to produce a more free-flowing innings without the constant danger that Broad offers to left-handed batters.
But the likely return of both Broad and Anderson in Adelaide will pose “a new challenge” to Head and his Aussie teammates, who have been preparing for a unique Adelaide day-night test.
“I think we were challenged in the last test, their bowlers in periods came at us really hard,” Head said.
“We now have the next couple of days to best prepare ourselves for that.”
Yet Head knows his best is good enough to succeed against even the best bowlers in the world, as proven in Brisbane last week. Upon reflecting on his whirlwind Gabba knock, he was satisfied with his tempo and technique throughout all stages of his innings.
More Ashes News:
‘I’m excited to head to Adelaide’: Alex Carey excited for pink-ball Ashes homecoming
The bridesmaid or the breakaway – who should replace Josh Hazlewood in Adelaide?
The Top 6: Selection mysteries; caught in a spin; Ashes First Test Talking Points
Heading into a new challenge in his home city of Adelaide, the South Australian skipper couldn’t be more relaxed about what the next week holds.
“I was really calm and in my process, I still felt like I moved in really good patterns to access the ball – I got opportunities to score and I took them,” he said.
“I feel like my technique is in the right space to go the other way too. My feet were really good, everything I’ve been working on I need to continue. If I need to move the game forward or go the other way, then I feel ready to do that.”
The middle-order batter is content with knowing that England will be working hard behind closed doors to devise new plans for him after their initial tactics failed in Brisbane.
With Broad likely to return to his around the wicket plan that trumped Head and his fellow left-handed batters in England, Head is now more confident that he has proven at the Gabba that he can work through a wide range of negating plans.
“They went through the gears and tried different things throughout the innings at the Gabba,” Head said.
“With the inclusions, they may have and the ball swinging, they might go around the wicket as the pink ball can do different things at different times.”
“I’m sure they’ll come up with more plans, as I moved through some last week, but I did get through those periods when it was tough to execute.”
Subscribe to our newsletter!
About Author
