Ashes 2023: Travis Head was outstanding, but Australia in trouble at Headingley

Australia set England a modest 250-run chase with two and a bit days left in the third Test, thanks in the most to another rearguard action by Travis Head.

Mark Wood of England celebrates dismissing Australia captain Pat Cummins. Picture: Getty

Australia set England a modest 250 run chase with two and a bit days left in the third Test, thanks in the most to another rearguard action by Travis Head, who showed patience early and purpose when left with only the tail for company.

The target does not seem enough and the home team will be confident it can drag itself back into a series it trails 2-0.

Head was outstanding, pacing himself against short ball bowling early in his innings and unleashing in the manner of Ben Stokes in the latter stages.

He struck seven fours and three 6s on his way to 77 – his third half-century of the series.

The South Australian is having a great tour, having scored 163 in the World Test Championship final and 50s in the first innings at Edgbaston and Lord’s.

After play he dismissed comparisons to Stokes and admitted Australia would like more runs but said they were confident they could get the job done on Sunday.

Travis Head of Australia salutes the crowd after reaching his half century. Picture: Getty

“It has been a challenging tour with the plans they’ve come to set,” he said. “I felt I battled through it today for a period and then was able to put some pressure back on them at the end there.

“I would have ideally liked a few more but we’ve got an opportunity to win a Test match.”

Head, who has averaged 52 and moved along at a strike rate of 81, could lay claim to being an early adopter of the Bazball method, indeed he was playing that way 12 months before the brand was unveiled.

The batter said he was expecting short ball tactics but surprised that almost every delivery England bowled was short during his innings.

Some days it is just not worth getting out of bed and so it was for Australia who sat and watched puddles form on the covers for much of Saturday.

When the rain did clear around 5pm and play was allowed it was the best of times for England and the worst for Pat Cummins’ outfit.

By 7pm the visitors had lost 6-108 from 121 balls. It didn’t seem much, it doesn’t seem enough, but it was not easy going.

By the time England batted the sun was out and the going a little easier. Zak Crawley (9) and Ben Duckett (18) had reduced the target to 224 by the end of the rain shortened day.

For the first 120 minutes bowlers, well rested from their previous days travails, prospered in the dim Yorkshire light.

Mark Wood bowled so fast you could almost hear the ball whistle, one delivery glance fine hit the advertising hoarding so hard its LED display malfunctioned.

Jonny Bairstow was keeping so far back he could have had his pocket picked by the sight screen attendant and yet one short ball flew over his head for four byes, others were climbing as they reached him.

This was no weather for batting, no weather for a side that had 4-116 on the board and only a modest total to challenge the home side with.

England had been on top since lunch the previous day thanks in no small part to a cameo by Mark Wood.

Things turned ugly quick.

Mitch Marsh, superhero of the first innings, couldn’t get his bat out of the way of a good delivery from Chris Woakes after adding 11 runs.

Alex Carey (5) was booed to the wicket, presumably for his role in the stumping of Bairstow at Lord’s but conceivably for being falsely identified as the Australian who diddled a local barber the price of a hair cut.

The story published in The Sun was, unsurprisingly, completely false, but kept people entertained while waiting for play to begin.

Carey played on trying, like Marsh, to leave Woakes.

Before the first hour was done Starc (16) was also wandering back to the pavilion having got top edged Wood. Head, who had been making slow progress against a constant diet of short bowling was joined by Pat Cummins (1) for the start of the second hour, but the skipper was not equipped to deal with Wood’s pace and nicked one through to Bairstow.

Murphy, at least managed to hang around and contribute 11 runs while Head farmed the strike at the other end, picking off boundaries where he could.

To give the young off spinner his due he looked relatively comfortable until he found himself pinned at the crease for an examination by Stuart Broad who got the benefit of an umpire’s call LBW.

Wood has taken seven wickets on return to the side after spending most of the year injured, but also made an important contribution with the bat.