Travis Head has earned comparisons to Allan Border following another important innings for his country that also has him tipped as a future captain of the Australian setup.
Head set up a win for Australia in the first innings knock against West Indies in his home Test at the Adelaide Oval with a scratchy yet eventually brilliant century on Day 2.
His knock of 119 off just 134 balls made him the only Aussie to score better than 45 on the way to a handy first innings lead.
With the West Indies’ collapsing late on Thursday, Head has the Aussies poised for a fourth consecutive Test win this summer.
It was Head’s grit and determination that has seen SEN Cricket’s Adam White compare the 30-year-old to one of Australia’s greatest ever.
“The thing with Travis is if he’s out there for any more than an hour, it’s an innings you remember because it’s an innings of real consequence,” White said on SEN’s Sportsday SA.
“I don’t know Travis Head personally… but I’ve thought for a long time that he was going to be the next captain for Australia and the reason being is – and this is well before what he did in the World Cup, World Test Championship, Ashes ect. – he does tend to be someone who thrives on the big moment and thrives on performing when others aren’t.
“The one player that I think of when I think of Travis Head, not so much his batsmanship but his presence in the team, is Allan Border.
“Allan Border did that through the 1980s and into the early 90s that when it was tough, he stood up.
“That was what he was remembered for and I reckon that’s how we’ll remember Travis Head.”
45 Tests into his career, Head now has his spot in the middle order guaranteed.
His Test batting average of 43.26 has him in the same realm as household names David Warner (44.59), David Boon (43.65) and Mark Taylor (43.49), while Head also boasts a Test bowling average of 32.54.
The electric left-hander is currently Australia’s vice-captain and given he’s the same age as skipper Pat Cummins, may never see his time as the sole leader of the Test squad.
But his proficiency in both ODIs and T20s have him in line for captaincy opportunities in white-ball cricket, with White pointing out Head’s leadership credentials have been evident from a young age.
“He was captain of South Australia at 21, he often scores big hundreds for SA when his team is under pressure… but even for the (Adelaide) Strikers, same thing,” he added.
“To me, that’s leadership.”
Tune in across the SEN network to hear all the action LIVE from Adelaide on Day 3 of the first Test.
