Having swashbuckled Australia to victory after vaulting to the top of the order in the first Ashes Test, Travis Head arrived in Brisbane on Sunday to begin his preparations for the second, saying that the future of the format lies in the hands of batters who can flex into a variety of positions. Head described pliable positions as “where the game’s going to”, proposing that Australia could already “use these players in a range of different ways to win games of cricket”.
Last month Pat Cummins, Australia’s injured captain, described the concept of batting orders as “pretty overrated”, insisting quality players “can bat wherever” – an opinion Head echoed.
“I think you could use this order and these players in a range of different ways to win games of cricket,” he said. “We’ve seen it in red-ball, and particularly pink-ball, as well as non-traditional stuff, with double nightwatchmen, and how you use orders and how you use players in certain situations. I agree with Pat that they’re slightly overrated. That I guess is where the game’s going to, and it’s when do you use that, when’s the right time, when’s it acceptable, and we’re going to have good moments of it and we’re going to have bad moments of it. It’s ever-evolving. We’ll see where we get to.
“I feel like I can play in any role, so I’m open to it, and it’s just trying to work out in game and in moments when that may come out and when you may use that, but I think all options are on the table and have been for a long period of time, about where this team can potentially get better and where there are opportunities to potentially win games of cricket in moments. I think it’s always been on the table.”
Head reiterated his readiness to open the batting again in Brisbane this week and that he was “preparing for anything at this stage”. One thing he is not doing, however, is worrying about the pink ball – “It’s still a cricket ball” – and the impact of playing much of the match under floodlights.
“There’s a lot talked about lights and when it does things and what it does and doesn’t do,” he said. “You’ve just got to play the game in front of you. Some wickets are greener, some flatten out, some crack, some spin. The game and the wicket evolves over five days, the ball sometimes plays differently in different moments.
“I guess half the skill of cricket is being able to adapt to moments and problem solve on the go. There’s definitely those throughout pink-ball games, and the best team that’s able to problem-solve on the go and generally just play the game of cricket and not overthink too much will find themselves having a pretty good week.”
