Recalled Head has phenomenal white-ball record: Bailey

Travis Head has capped his breakout Ashes campaign with a surprise return to the forefront of selectors' thinking for the white-ball formats with national selector George Bailey today hailing his "phenomenal" white-ball record.

Head was today named in Australia's 16-player squad for the Dettol T20 series against Sri Lanka that starts next month, Australia's first matches on home soil ahead of October's defence of the T20 World Cup won last November.

And the South Australian looks set to play a role in the one-day side as well, with the possibility of key players missing the white-ball matches at the end of the Pakistan Test tour, as an ODI World Cup approaches next year in India.

"Trav is a very talented cricketer across all three formats. I think we're seeing him come into the best years of his life hopefully in terms of the way he plays his cricket," Bailey said today.

"We saw some terrific form with the bat over the Test series, and he's just a quality striker of the ball, he's a quality cricket player.

"So we're just looking to get him involved in as much of the white-ball stuff as we can."

Head won the Compton-Miller medal as player of the series with centuries in Brisbane and Hobart among his 357 runs that came at a swashbuckling strike rate of 86.02. That strike rate across an entire Ashes series is second only to Ian Botham's efforts in 1981 for batters scoring at least 300 runs.

A veteran of 42 one-dayers and 16 T20 internationals, Head has not played white-ball cricket for Australia since 2018 and was last mentioned in despatches in mid-2020, when he was included in an initial 26-player squad for a white-ball series in England but was cut from the touring party of 21.

"We saw the way that he played and the tempo that he played his Test cricket with (and) his domestic one-day record over the past couple of years has been phenomenal," Bailey said today.

"The one part of his game that he probably hasn't had the continuity or the time to focus on has been his T20 cricket, but if you go back through his history there's a skillset there that that lends itself to that format.

"He just fits really well with what he can do and provides a little bit of flexibility."

However, Head will not march into the starting line-up for the opening game on February 11 at the SCG with Australia selecting a squad that "ended up being a lot closer to full strength than what we were perhaps anticipating" following New Zealand pulling out of an ODI tour.

"The World Cup crew that we had from late last year, there's not going to be a huge amount of change I wouldn't have envisaged over the next four months in the lead up to this year's World Cup," Bailey said.

"But what we are after are really specific replacements and opportunities for guys should the need arise to use them in the lead up to October."

Head has yet to fire since returning to the Adelaide Strikers for this summer's KFC BBL finals with scores of 3 and 5 but boasts a T20 international career average of 26.58 and strike-rate topping 130 from 16 matches.

Where Head's opportunities come could hinge on the structure of the playing XI stand-in coach Andrew McDonald takes into the series.

While Australia has generally used five bowlers in home T20s (three quicks, two spinners), they found success with using just one spinner during the World Cup, with Ashton Agar the man missing out.

If they persist with that World Cup-winning structure, Head – who can bowl handy right-arm off-breaks – could see himself slotting into the batting line-up as a replacement for Mitch Marsh, particularly if Marcus Stoinis' plans to return to bowling in the Sri Lanka series come to fruition.

However, if Agar returns with the T20 World Cup defence on home decks in mind, Head may be squeezed out and Steve Smith could reclaim his spot at No.3.

"One of the things that was really important to try and to impress upon Ash in the World Cup itself was that he wasn't dropped, he just didn't fit into the group," Bailey said today.

"We've got so much cricket coming up he's going to get lots of opportunities; completely different conditions in Australia, so bigger grounds, spin plays a different role than what it did in the UAE and our allrounders can play a different role as well.

"The beauty of the amount of games we have is that Ash will have lots of opportunities and we'll be able to play around with different makeups and see which one we think will hold us in best stead come October."

Dettol T20 Series v Sri Lanka 2022

Australia squad: Aaron Finch (c), Ashton Agar, Pat Cummins, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Moises Henriques, Josh Inglis, Ben McDermott, Glenn Maxwell, Jhye Richardson, Kane Richardson, Steve Smith, Mitchell Starc, Marcus Stoinis, Matthew Wade, Adam Zampa

Sri Lanka squad: TBC

February 11: First T20, SCG, 7.10pm AEDT

February 13: Second T20, SCG, 7.10pm AEDT

February 15: Third T20, Manuka Oval, 7.10pm AEDT

February 18: Fourth T20, MCG, 7.10pm AEDT

February 20: Fifth T20, MCG, 7.10pm AEDT

All matches broadcast exclusively on Fox Cricket and Kayo Sports. Radio coverage by ABC Grandstand