"Not a chance" - Travis Head on whether he would ever try a reverse ramp like Joe Root
Travis Head has said that he wouldn't play a reverse ramp like Joe Root and would rather clear his front leg and slog the ball if he wants to be inventive.
Head was bombarded with short-pitched bowling in the first Ashes Test at Edgbaston in Birmingham which Australia won by two wickets. Root, who scored 118* and 46 respectively in England's two innings, played a few reverse ramps to unsettle the Australian seamers.
During an interaction on 'The Unplayable Podcast', Travis Head was asked whether he would ever try the reverse ramp like Root. He replied in the negative:
"Not a chance, I can't play the normal reverse sweep. I barely can play on my left-hand side. I have tinkered with stuff, not that shot in particular. I find it easier just to clear my front leg and slog it rather than try to be too funky and I think that works for me."
Head scored 50 runs off 63 deliveries in Australia's first innings of the Edgbaston Test and strung together a valuable 81-run fourth-wicket partnership with Usman Khawaja. The middle-order batter managed only 16 runs in the visitors' fourth-innings chase.
"We are going to try to suffocate the boundary" - Travis Head on Australia's field settings after Joe Root played the reverse ramps
Travis Head was also asked about Australia's field settings for Joe Root after he played the reverse ramps against Scott Boland, to which he responded:
"I think with both teams, we are going to try to suffocate the boundary and try to get batters playing forward defense. In Test cricket, you always talk about getting batters to play forward defense, bring your slips in - nicked, bowled, lbw - especially with the Dukes which can just do a little bit on any wicket at any stage."
The left-handed batter added that defensive fields would have to be set if boundaries are being hit:
"We feel like it's in our favor if there are three slips and a gully and they are going hard and they are going to nick it, but if they are finding ways to get boundaries."
While praising Root's execution of the reverse ramp, Head pointed out that Australia had a defensive strategy against Jonny Bairstow too:
"He has actually played the reverse scoops unbelievably well. He probably missed one, which was the first ball of the day but once he is set, he has found a way to get bat on it and you have seen the same thing with Bairstow batting out of the crease and Alex (Carey) coming upto the stumps."
Travis Head highlighted that Ben Stokes had a similar defensive straight fielder when Moeen Ali was bowling. He concluded by stating that a lot of cat-and-mouse stuff will be seen throughout the Ashes.