The aggressive left-hander scored 34 runs in three T20Is against India.
Australia’s gun opener Travis Head has not made his way to the playing XI for the penultimate T20I against India in Carrara. The series is evenly poised with both the teams having a piece, with the first match going down the drain due to inclement weather. Though Head has scored just 34 runs in the two innings he has batted in, the reason for his non-inclusion is far from performance.
It is learnt that the aggressive left-handed batter has been released from Australia’s squad in order to participate in a Sheffield Shield fixture to prepare for the upcoming Ashes series. Travis Head will represent South Australia in their next fixture of the Shield. This is a move which highlights the management’s efforts to manage the workload of their athletes.
As far as the playing XI for Australia is concerned, they have brought in Glenn Maxwell in place of Travis Head, who is a like-for-like replacement considering the impact he can create on the field. The 37-year-old was injured on the wrist while preparing for the T20I series against New Zealand in Mount Maunganui, and has fully recovered from the setback.
With the series levelled at 1-1, this game will be crucial for both the teams towards the result of the series. A win in this fixture for either of the two teams would make sure that they would not lose the five-match showdown, even if the last game does not go their way. But considering the fearless approach that both the teams have displayed, it is safe to say that we are in for another blockbuster of a contest.
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Be it the longest format or the shortest, Travis Head has become one of the most important players to have for the mighty Australians. His ability to take the attack to the opposition and change the course of the game in a matter of minutes stands out, and the left-handed batter has been given the freedom to express himself out on the field.
Alongside the Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) opener, Steve Smith, Mitchell Starc and Josh Hazlewood have also returned to the red-ball duties for their respective domestic sides in order to prepare for the Ashes. Needless to state Cameron Green, who has also joined forces with the Western Australia side for their clash against Queensland at the WACA. Green has had a rusty patch with injuries in the recent past and would love to make an impact when it matters the most.
Travis Head has had a jittery phase in the shortest format of the game recently. In his last 10 fixtures, the left-hander has gone past the 30-run mark on just two occasions, with his last fifty coming in September 2024. Head has followed the same technique for a long time now, in which he takes his front foot completely out of the way, in order to create room to hit the ball.
In Tests, the 31-year-old scored fifties in both the innings in the first Test against the West Indies in Bridgetown. He will be prepared to play in the middle-order, where he usually does in the longest format. Australia will take on England in the first Test on November 21 in Perth, commencing the five-match mega-event between the two arch-rivals.
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