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Travis Head is renowned for turning cricket matches into parties: after making his name popping sixes into the stands of Adelaide Oval as if they were champagne corks on New Year’s Eve a decade ago.
On Saturday, with another whirlwind hundred, the second fastest in Ashes history, he was the toast of Australia at a raucous Perth Stadium as he out-Bazballed the Bazballers.
As a 22-year-old, he crunched nine sixes in a 53-ball effort that downed the Sydney Sixers, and his audacious approach saw him take down a five-pronged England pace attack that proved a pale imitation of the one that completed the dismantling of Australia’s first innings for 132 at the start of the day.
Head was only opening the batting because of Usman Khawaja’s latest in a series of back spasms - following multiple days of golf in the build-up to this match. Marnus Labuschagne had partnered debutant Jake Weatherald in the first innings, but dismissing England for 164 on the eve of tea provided greater contemplation time for Australia’s think-tank.
And after dismissing tail-ender Nathan Lyon as an option, settled on a combination of two left-handers.
'We didn't like how things functioned in the first innings with Marn going up top, and me batting three, so Trav took it on and played one of the great Ashes knocks,’ Australia’s stand-in captain Steve Smith said, of the tactical change.
Travis Head acknowledges the Perth crowd after finally being dismissed for 123
The left-hander struck 16 boundaries and four maximums in his innings
Head’s presence at the top of the order certainly influenced England’s tactics too, with the man himself recalling: ‘The last Ashes, I didn't get a full ball for the first two or three Tests.’
And so instead of sticking to the lengths that had delivered such rich rewards 24 hours earlier, the tourists began banging the ball halfway down the pitch inside the opening 10 overs. Head’s response was to bang it into the gaps, or over the ropes when the mood took him.
The dimensions of this ground are not dissimilar to those of the WACA, just across the Swan River, where Adam Gilchrist registered a 57-ball century against England in late 2006.
But for Head’s initial restraint - he had three from 14 deliveries before launching into an innings every bit as devastating as that of Ben Stokes at Headingley in 2019 - he might have matched that number.
England's bowlers had no answers to Head, who was willing to take on the short ball barrage
Head celebrates reaching three figures off the bowling of Gus Atkinson
Half a dozen boundaries in a burst of 22 deliveries took him to a half-century immediately after Brydon Carse bounced out Weatherald, ensuring that the breakthrough did not coincide with respite.
England’s batsmen had made the square boundaries look every inch their size, but beneath Head’s Super Mario moustache lurk Popeye forearms and a succession of slashes and pulls sent his opponents into a tailspin.
Stokes, arguably England’s best bowler of 2025 and their most successful of the first innings with five for 23, brought himself on to the acclaim of a healthy travelling support that swelled the crowd to 49,983 - and an overall record six-figure Test attendance for this venue.
Yet there was no respite. In typical Aussie style, Head took down England’s captain, bulldozing four fours in five balls of his opening over.
England’s players looked forlorn with every audacious stroke. Jofra Archer’s return to the attack was greeted with a flat-batted swot into the sight screen.
Riding the bounce from Atkinson, dabbing his 69th ball behind square for a single, took him to three figures.
England captain Ben Stokes showed his respect to Head when he was eventually dismissed
Even when he didn’t strike with precision, he got enough wood on his connections to survive, bringing up the 100-run partnership with Marnus Labuschagne with a cut over Carse at deep point off Atkinson to a scream of ‘oh no, get over,’ like a golfer chipping over water on the short 13th.
The expiration of his luck came when he holed out to midwicket, prompting a huge embrace from Labuschagne, who caught the mood with an unbeaten 51 from the other end, and Stokes to hurtle 30 yards from his fielding position to shake England’s tormentor by the hand.
Head’s modest response to his match-winning hand was to say ’Jeez, it was a tough two days. They’re a seriously good outfit.’ Before indulging in the traditional Australian victory celebration of drinking beer from his baggy green cap.
For England, much more sobering contemplation about their own part in history.
