Travis Head is probably scoring quicker now than Gilchrist probably ever did: Ricky Ponting

Travis Head. (Photo Source: Justin Setterfield/Getty Images)

Australia great Ricky Ponting lavished massive praise on Travis Head following his marvellous century knock against team India, on Day 1 of the ICC World Test Championship (WTC) 2021-23 final, at The Oval in London.

After the Aussies were handed three major blows in the form of David Warner, Usman Khawaja, and Marnus Labuschagne for 76 runs, it was the pair of Travis Head and Steve Smith, who kept the innings steady with their crucial innings. The pair combined to raise a magnificent 251-run partnership at the end of Day 1, which included a stellar 146 runs off 156 balls by Head, featuring 22 boundaries and a solitary six.

Impressed with the knock, former Aussie skipper Ponting put Head in the same bracket as legendary wicketkeeper-batter, Adam Gilchrist. He further added that the flamboyant southpaw has maintained a solid strike rate due to which his confidence keeps improving with every passing game. Moreover, Ponting also pointed out that Head has been consistent for the last two years which is incredible.

“He probably is (similar to Gilchrist). In fact, he is probably scoring quicker now than Gilly probably ever did. His strike rate through this WTC qualification period is 81, which is higher than anyone else in the world to have scored more than 500 runs,” Ponting told the ICC.

He hits boundaries early on in his innings which puts pressure back on the bowlers: Ponting

“His confidence is growing by the game, his strike rate keeps going up, he hits boundaries early on in his innings which puts pressure back on the bowlers which is what you want from your middle order players, and his last two years have been quite remarkable,” he added.

Ponting further added that India’s bowling attack will need to execute their plans perfectly while being up against Head. He said that the Southpaw tends to put away bad balls and that India will need to improvise in the second innings.

“I think when he first comes in you need to execute perfectly to him. It is no good trying to over attack him because if you bowl any bad ball, he is going to put it away. They will learn by the way they bowled to him in this first innings, and they will definitely adjust in this second innings, but sometimes it is too late,” Ponting concluded.