"Our heads aren’t in the clouds" - Travis Head responds to "rift" rumors after Josh Hazlewood's injury snub for 2nd BGT 2024-25 Test
Travis Head claimed there was "no bad blood" between Australian batters and bowlers despite Josh Hazlewood's divisive comments after the massive loss in the Perth Test. Instead, Head said that the Aussies have dealt with adversities before by working for each other and will continue to try doing that.
Hazlewood was Australia's best bowler in Perth as, after a 46-run difference in first innings scores, the hosts conceded 487 in the third essay and were then bowled out for just 238 to lose the match. In the post-match conference, Hazlewood was asked about Australia's comeback plans and he said the reporters should ask that questions to the batters.
Rumors of the "rift" began when Hazelwood was ruled out of the second Test in Adelaide, starting Friday, December 6, due to a side strain. Some home fans believed his remarks cost him a place in the 11.
“Batters want to hold our own … we know how good our bowlers have been in the past," Head told reporters on Monday. "Knowing that if I can set it up for the big boys, they can knock it down for us, so definitely no bad blood. I feel like this team has dealt with adversity well, with the small amount that we’ve had in the last three or four years."
“We’ve had some challenging times, we had a couple of challenging Tests last year that we were able to get ourselves out of. Our heads aren’t in the clouds, we understand a few Tests last year could’ve gone either way,” he added.
Scott Boland, who's making an injury comeback after four months, is touted to be the most likely replacement for Hazelwood.
"We are all supporting each other" - Travis Head
Head was the best Aussie batter in Perth, the only one to score more than 50 runs - 89 (101) in the final innings - but didn't offer any tips for his teammates regarding improvement for Adelaide.
"(The other batters) are not coming to me for batting tips, that’s for sure. Everyone goes about it in different ways … we’re all supporting each other … we’ll have a chat over the next three or four days,” Head told reporters.
Australia would miss Hazlewood either way. He's the third-highest wicket-taker in pink-ball Tests and has the best bowling average for those with at least 15 wickets in Adelaide at an average of 16.82.