Trends-AU

Head relishing challenge on bowler-friendly wickets in the Ashes

Travis Head believes he can produce better batting performances on bowler-friendly wickets in the upcoming Ashes series.

The first Test in Perth gets underway on November 20 as Australia will look to retain the Urn Down Under against their rivals.

Head has scored 910 runs in 13 Tests against England, scoring two tons and five half-centuries at an average of 39.6.

His batting averages improve when playing at home, scoring 51.5 runs per wicket, but he has yet to score a century in 13 innings so far this year.

Although the slower wickets may lead to more runs scored across the board, Head thinks his game is better suited for faster surfaces.

“I probably enjoy batting on those sort of wickets,” Head told ESPNcricinfo.

“The flatter wickets, with the grind, that more so challenge technique, I think, over longer periods of time [trying] to eke out runs has never probably come as natural to me with being a stroke player and wanting to get on with it.

“And the slower, flat wickets probably don’t tend to that. But fast-paced pitches that nip, you can maybe get away with a few things.

“And then obviously the way I want to play is if they present opportunities to score, you score. So when they’re greener, they pitch up a little bit more and a bit fuller, and the style that I play, if they miss a little bit, I’m able to hopefully score and get busy.

CLASS OF ’25 pic.twitter.com/YLXJbZZJXI

— Cricket Australia (@CricketAus) September 9, 2025

“It’s a run-based game. You see some of the great players, like Steve Smith, Joe Root, you blink and they’re on 30 or 40.

“And that’s something that I’ve always appreciated, and definitely [on] these wickets, you know that you potentially have got one with your name on it.

“You can still play well. You can still get runs. Sometimes you’ve got that go about it in different ways. But ultimately, it’s a game where you go try and score as many as you can.”

Related Articles

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Back to top button