"Head became a headache" - Harbhajan Singh praises Travis Head's counter-attacking ton in WTC Final
Former Indian spinner Harbhajan Singh has praised Travis Head's hundred on Day 1 of the World Test Championship (WTC) final at The Oval. The left-handed batter's knock and the resulting partnership with Steve Smith steered the momentum completely in favor of the Australians.
Head came into bat right after Lunch following the key wicket of Marnus Labuschagne that left Australia at a precarious position of 72-3. He began scoring at a brisk rate and took on the bowlers, eventually bringing up his highest Test score in England (146*) and his first ton against India.
Blaming the bowlers for not capitalizing on Head's weakness when he was new to the crease, Harbhajan Singh said on his YouTube channel:
"At one stage Australia were 72-3 and it seemed like India were in the contest, but Head became a headache after that. He batted in his typical fashion, counter-attacked brilliantly. Indian bowlers did not bowl any bouncers to him early on, which is his known weakness. The bowlers started bowling bouncers to him when he was in his nineties."
Opining that India will have to pitch the ball fuller on a consistent basis to yield results, Harbhajan continued:
"The first day was disappointing for India. Steve Smith also batted really well. For India to come back into this contest, they will have to pitch it fuller. Anderson and Broad get wickets here by getting the batters to drive. Australia still have a lot of batting left with Green and Carey yet to come."
India could only pick three wickets on Day 1, with Mohammed Siraj, Mohammed Shami, and Shardul Thakur each claiming one wicket. The economy of the bowlers was on the higher side as well since Australia went on to score 327 runs in 85 overs.
"If India keep Australia under 450 in the first innings, then it is game on" - Harbhajan Singh
India took the new ball in the 81st over, but could not find a late breakthrough to end the day on a high. After not making the most of the first new ball, the seamers have a second opportunity to set things right with a brand new Dukes ball on Day 2 against the solid duo of Travis Head and Steve Smith.
Harbhajan Singh feels that restricting Australia to a first-innings total of around 450 is vital for India to come back into the contest.
"India will have to make the new ball count. India should also trust Ravindra Jadeja more. I thought that he could have bowled more on Day 1. When Australia eventually end their innings, India should not feel discouraged that they scored 450-500 runs. If they can, then you can also do it. If India keep Australia under 450 in the first innings, then it is game on," he said.
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