Head finds spin 'blueprint' as he continues golden summer

Having put the finishing touches on another golden summer, Travis Head is confident he can translate his hot home form into tours abroad where he has previously found runs more difficult to come by.

Steve Smith is not easily impressed when it comes to batting but lauded Head for his dynamism at No.5, with the left-hander's latest hand helping to sink South Africa in the NRMA Insurance series-concluding Test in Sydney.

The Proteas had finally broken a 209-run between century-makers Usman Khawaja and Smith, only for Head to blaze 70 from 59 deliveries in a rapid cameo late on day two.

It could be his final knock of the Test season, leaving him with an average of 87.50 from the five Tests against South Africa and West Indies, having only once been dismissed for under 50 in seven innings.

"It was pretty entertaining wasn't it? I love sitting back and watching him go about it," Smith said of last summer’s player of the Ashes series.

"At the moment he's just batting with such confidence and such freedom.

"He's incredibly difficult to bowl to particularly when you've got a decent score already on the board and you've drained the bowlers a little bit.

"But he's also, throughout the summer, played innings when the bowlers have been fresh and just counterpunched them.

"He's a great No.5 for us at the moment, he's playing beautifully and long may that continue."

The South Australian already has one eye on his next challenge – the four-Test tour of India where the Aussies are bracing for dynamite spinners Ravichandran Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja and Axar Patel to test them in turning conditions.

On a dry SCG surface that is as close to a subcontinental wicket as could be found for a Test Down Under, Head was encouraged by how he handled the South African spin threats.

His ability to neutralise Simon Harmer, the veteran off-spinner highly rated by the Australians, was particularly pleasing for Head, who edged him early in his innings (the catch falling just short of slip) before slapping a succession of boundaries to end up with 28 runs from 20 balls faced from the long-time Essex bowler.

"There's definitely something there for them (spinners)," Head told cricket.com.au. "For me it was about trying to put them under pressure.

"There's going to be a lot spoken about (spin) with what's to come over the next couple of months.

"I felt like the one I nicked, he (Harmer) bowled a really nice ball. I just wanted to be proactive and try to get him off that length, and I felt I moved down the wicket really nicely.

"He's an exceptional bower – he's got (nearly) 840 first-class wickets – I've faced him in the past.

"It probably has been the biggest challenge of the summer so far with the wicket spinning, second innings maybe will be the same if I get an opportunity.

"But I feel like the way I played and how positive my feet were back and forth, it's a nice start, it's a nice blueprint."

Head has also deftly handled Keshav Maharaj in this series, scoring at better than a run-a-ball against the left-armer.

But the Australians are under no illusions that spin will be much harder to handle when they get to India.

Head now averages 57.40 in Tests at home, where all five of his hundreds have come, but has managed only 21.69 runs per innings in nine Tests abroad.

The 29-year-old is yet to play a Test in India but did not score more than 26 in seven innings in Pakistan and Sri Lanka last year.

"It's hard to work on what you're going to come up against," said Head.

"To know it's in a good space (is pleasing). I've felt like I've played Maharaj really well this summer. I know the wickets haven’t spun much, but I've been really happy with the way I've moved to the ball and trying to score.

"That's all you can do. In the nets you just want to get in a good rhythm, you want to be making really good decisions.

"Over the next month there will be opportunities to do that (practice against spin) – we'll mimic those conditions as much as we can, we've got time over there to try and do that."

Men's NRMA Insurance Test Series v South Africa

First Test: Australia won by six wickets

Second Test: Australia won by an innings and 182 runs

Jan 4-8: Third Test, SCG, 10.30am AEDT

Australia squad: Pat Cummins (c), Ashton Agar, Scott Boland, Alex Carey, Marcus Harris, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Usman Khawaja, Marnus Labuschagne, Lance Morris, Nathan Lyon, Matthew Renshaw, Steve Smith, David Warner

South Africa squad: Dean Elgar (c), Temba Bavuma, Gerald Coetzee, Theunis de Bruyn, Sarel Eree, Simon Harmer, Marco Jansen, Keshav Maharaj, Heinrich Klaasen, Lungi Ngidi, Anrich Nortje, Kagiso Rabada, Rassie van der Dussen, Kyle Verreynne, Lizaad Williams, Khaya Zondo

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