Discarded Test batter Travis Head has continued to mount a compelling case for a recall for the Ashes, pummeling a double century for South Australia in the Marsh one-day cup.
Less than a month after the Redbacks captain carved out 163 in the opening Marsh Sheffield Shield fixture of the summer, he has belted 230 runs from just 127 balls against Queensland at Adelaide’s Karen Rolton Oval.
Included in the incredible knock were 28 fours and eight sixes as Head, batting at first drop, flayed an attack led by fellow Ashes hopeful Michael Neser.
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The left-hander’s 114-ball double century is the fastest in men’s List A cricket.
Head is now also the only Australian man to have struck two List A double centuries, having already made 202 against Western Australia in 2015.
And his innings of 230 now stands as the second-highest score in Australian one-day cup history, having only been topped by D’Arcy Short‘s 257 against Queensland in 2018.
Head arrived at the crease with South Australia 1-22 and, when he holed out to Marnus Labuschagne at long-on off the bowling of Neser during the 47th over, the Redbacks were 5-383.
AAP sports journalist Oliver Caffrey summed up the brilliance of the knock perfectly, describing it on Twitter as “a proper video-game innings”.
https://twitter.com/ollycaffrey/status/1448144283349835781
Head has registered 1153 Test runs, including two tons and seven half-centuries, at an average of 39.75 from his 19 matches.
But he hasn’t represented Australia in the five-day format since meeting India in last year’s Boxing Day Test.
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The left-hander dropped out of the side ahead of the SCG Test as Matthew Wade slid from opening to batting at No.5, with Will Pucovski joining David Warner at the top of the order.
Head had only managed scores of seven, 38 and 17 over the first two Tests of the series against India, while he had also had several technical flaws exposed.
Head, once touted by the legendary Shane Warne as a “future captain” of Australia’s Test side, is hoping to return to the XI for the opening match of the Ashes, set to begin on December 8.
It’s believed that Head, Cameron Green, Matthew Wade, Glenn Maxwell, Shaun Marsh, Usman Khawaja and Alex Carey are those in contention for Australia’s No.5 and No.6 spots.
Labuschagne has No.3 locked up and former Test captain Steve Smith will slot in at No.4.
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