Ashes: 'Two years ago you silenced India'- Shastri’s hard-hitting tribute to Travis Head

Travis Head has agelong been a thorn successful India’s flesh, and his latest heroics successful the Ashes person lone strengthened that reputation. The Australian left-hander has a wont of rising spectacularly erstwhile the unit is astatine its fiercest, thing Indian fans retrieve each excessively good from the 2023 ODI World Cup last and the World Test Championship decider earlier that aforesaid year. But his match-winning effort successful the opening Ashes Test astatine Perth whitethorn good beryllium the finest innings of his career. On a lively Optus Stadium transportation offering gait and bounce, Australia were tasked with overhauling 205 successful the last innings. With regular opener Usman Khawaja ruled retired done injury, Head was pushed up to unfastened alongside debutant Jake Weatherald. The move, initially a gamble, turned into a masterstroke.

Head tore into the English onslaught from the archetypal over, racing to a period successful conscionable 69 deliveries and finishing with a blistering 123 disconnected 83 balls. His sound featured 16 fours and 4 sixes, and included 2 important partnerships — a 75-run basal with Weatherald and a 117-run confederation with Marnus Labuschagne — that carried Australia to a singular triumph wrong 2 days. Former India caput manager Ravi Shastri, watching the carnage unfold, could not defy drafting parallels with the Indian heartbreak of 2023. Taking to X, helium wrote:

“Travis Head… 2 years ago, you plunged my state into silence. And today, you person done it again, successful the champion format of the game, successful blistering fashion, with 1 of the large innings. Take a bow. England… that was special.” Head yet fell to Brydon Carse, but the contention had been settled by then. Labuschagne and

Steve Smith

completed the formalities arsenic Australia sealed a 1-0 pb successful thumping style.

England skipper

Ben Stokes

admitted aft the lucifer that helium was near “shellshocked” by Head’s onslaught, a sentiment that echoed crossed the cricket world. For India, England, and anyone other who has suffered astatine the hands of Travis Head, 1 happening is progressively wide — erstwhile the stakes are high, the left-hander becomes an unstoppable force.