World Test Championship (2021-23)

'Head became a headache for India' - Fans react as Travis Head's blazing 163 puts Australia in driver's seat in WTC 2023 final

Travis Head smashed his fourth Test 150-plus score to give Australia the upper hand in the ongoing WTC final against India.

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Travis Head

Travis Head (Source: Twitter)

Travis Head Travis Head (Source: Twitter)

"Travis changed the momentum" were Steve Smith's words after his dominant show alongside Travis Head against India on Day 1 of the World Test Championship final at The Oval. The game was in the balance when India got three wickets for 76 just after lunch on the opening day. But the scenario changed when Head and Smith decided to make the Indian bowlers work much harder.

After an early wicket of Usman Khawaja, David Warner and Marnus Labuschagne batted out brilliantly in a tense first hour. The duo stitched a 60+ partnership for the second wicket before Warner was dismissed for 43 off 60. Mohammed Shami gave another breakthrough for India by removing Labuschagne shortly after lunch.

As India tried to keep things under control, Head joined Smith in the middle and the aggressive play from the former put pressure on the Indian bowlers. The left-hander remained unbeaten on 146 off 156 balls as he put on an unbroken 251 for the fourth wicket with vice-captain Smith (95 off 227 balls). Asked to bat first, Australia ended Day 1 on Wednesday at 327/3 in 85 overs.

Head hits his third 150-plus score in the ongoing WTC cycle

Steve Smith smashed two back-to-back fours in the opening over of Day 2 to get his 31st Test century. On the other hand, Head registered his fourth 150+ score in the longer format. India was aiming for early wickets on Thursday, and Mohammed Siraj provided the breakthrough by dismissing Head for 163. The Indian bowlers did not miss the opportunity and picked up a few more wickets, including a big one from Smith.

Speaking at the end of Day 1, Head said: " I’ve always felt like and I've always said going out to bat with him it feels like you're in the shadow of that and you can sort of sneak under the radar and go about your business because he's drawn so much attention and it felt like that again today, it felt like he wasn't going to go anywhere.

"He was at the other end and sort of got in that rhythm and just went about business. A lot of balls that he may play or play out are a lot different to me so I think we complement each other completely differently but in the partnership, it works really nicely."

Here's how fans reacted to Travis Head's stunning century in the WTC final: 

India Australia WTC