WTC Final 2023: Travis Head, Steve Smith flay India bowlers as Australia seize control on Day 1

Australia got off to a dominant start in the ICC World Test Championship Final against India thanks to Travis Head and Steve Smith’s heroics on Day 1 at the Oval on Wednesday.

Head slammed his sixth Test century, which happened to be his first away from home, and stitched a mammoth unbroken stand with Steve Smith that was worth 251 at the close of play. Smith himself was closing in on his 31st Test hundred, ending the day on 95 after hitting Mohammed Shami for a boundary off the last delivery before stumps.

This was after India won the toss and skipper Rohit Sharma opted to field under overcast conditions in London, hoping to make optimal use of a green top at the home of the Surrey County Cricket Club.

Related Articles

World Cup 2023: Travis Head to miss first half of the tournament, Marnus Labuschagne back in contention

ICC World Cup Factbox: How England have fared in quadrennial showpiece event over the years

India leave Ashwin out

Rohit, meanwhile, chose to stick to India’s tried-and-test combination of four seamers and one spinner for the one-off Test, meaning senior off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin was benched yet again in England. The decision to bench the senior off-spinner, a proven match-winner in a host of conditions and not just in India, would raise many an eyebrow, especially later in the day when the bowling would lose its sting.

Read | Minute’s silence for Odisha train accident victims during WTC Final

India though, did cause some early damage with Mohammed Siraj getting opener Usman Khawaja caught-behind for a 10-ball duck in the fourth over of the Australian innings. Fellow left-handed opener David Warner and top-ranked Test batter Marnus Labuschagne would then go about rebuilding the innings with a 69-run second-wicket partnership. Both batters, however, would depart on either side of the lunch interval, with India staring at the prospect of restricting Australia to less than 300 after reducing them to 76/3.

Head, Smith take the game away from India

It was a one-way street from thereon however, as Head and Smith would go on to bat for two full sessions and flatten the Indian attack in the process.

While Smith started off cautiously, Head wasted little time in launching a counter-attack against the Indians, getting off the mark with a boundary in the same over in which Shami beat Labuschagne’s inside edge with an inswinger and rattled his off stump.

The South Australian would then collect two more boundaries off Siraj to move to double figues in quick time, and later collect back-to-back fours off Shami to signal the shift in momentum in favour of the Aussies.

In Photos: Travis Head, Steve Smith dominate on Day 1 of WTC Final

That Australia managed to post in excess of 300 was largely down to Head’s positive scoring rate, with the southpaw striking at over 100 early on in the innings to put the Indians under pressure and force them to commit mistakes. Head would soon bring up his half-century even as Smith chose to remain circumspect at the other end, and was batting on 60 as Australia went to tea on 170/3, collecting 97 runs for the loss of just one wicket in the second session.

The extended session would turn out to be even more one-sided compared to the second, with Australia collecting 157 runs without losing a single wicket. While Head continued to defy the challenges dished out to him by the Indian bowlers, which included getting hit on the helmet, it was Smith finally breaking the shackles in the evening session that would help tighten Australia’s grip on the game.

Read | Always love batting with Steve Smith, says Travis Head

Head, who had infamously been benched at this very venue during the 2019 Ashes, would bring up his century in 106 deliveries.

The Indians meanwhile, would be disappointed by the performances of Shardul Thakur and Umesh Yadav, who ended up conceding 129 runs from 32 overs while collecting just one wicket between them, which would make skipper Rohit and coach Rahul Dravid wonder if they missed a trick by not going for Ashwin.

Brief scores:

Australia 327/3 after 85 overs (Travis Head 146*, Steve Smith 95*; Mohammed Siraj 1/67) vs India

Read all the Latest News, Trending News, Cricket News, Bollywood News, India News and Entertainment News here. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.