India-slayer Head on 'terrifying' Perth pitch and no-pads prep

While Travis Head has credible evidence that he can take down India after coming off limited preparation, that is not the reason he might turn up to training without his batting pads over the coming weeks.

Head enters the NRMA Insurance Test series opener in Perth as Australia's most feared batter despite having spent hardly more than an hour at the crease in almost two months since his last international.

The birth of his and wife Jess's second child, an older brother, Harrison, to their daughter, Milla, earlier this month limited Head to a solitary Sheffield Shield match (scoring 30 and 10 against NSW) and also saw him sit out the home limited-overs series against Pakistan.

By his own admission, Head is hardly an obsessive trainer when compared to middle-order teammates Marnus Labuschagne and Steve Smith.

Yet the 30-year-old anticipates spending considerable time in the nets over the coming weeks to combat the tactics teams now typically use in their attempts to unsettle him.

Among them is right-arm off-spin, which has dismissed him 13 times since his return to Test cricket three years ago and against which he averages 33.77, much lower than the almost 50 runs he averages per dismissal against pace over that period (per Opta).

The uncertainty over whether India will play their leading exponent of that craft, Ravichandran Ashwin, alongside left-arm spinning allrounder Ravindra Jadeja, means that ploy could be off limits.

But what is certain to be used against Head at some stage is the bouncer-heavy ploy India admitted they were slow to adopt during his match-winning World Test Championship final century against them last year.

The series opener being held at the bounciest venue in Australia, coupled with memories of Head being caught at third man in both innings the last time India played Australia at Perth Stadium in 2018, could make the tactic appealing. 

"I do know that I've enjoyed batting here – in parts," Head, who averages over 40 at the venue and was one run short of a century against West Indies here two summers ago, told the Unplayable Podcast.

"There are parts of this wicket that can be terrifying, simple as that. I think everyone's talked about that. Depending on where the wicket goes to on day three, four and five, it can be challenging."

Head practiced for the bouncer barrage he copped during last year's Ashes series in the United Kingdom by facing yellow indoor cricket balls, which are softer and therefore hurt less when batters get hit, directed at his body and head in the nets.

The running joke was that Head did not require pads for his sessions given he was seldom facing anything pitched in his half of the pitch.

"I did it a lot in England," Head said. "I don't think I had a net session pretty much after the first Test that I faced cricket balls. I just faced yellow balls because I knew that (short balls) were all they were going to bowl me.

"When you're going through a long series, and I guess I was the one that copped it the most of that series, I thought I'd have a bit of a laugh and go to training without my pads – so that may come out again.

"I don't want a broken finger but I want to train it. It's not enjoyable to train and it's hard to do and visibility and wickets (makes it) not as (easy to bat against) as the centre.

"I think I heard Kevin Pietersen talk about it a while back, that no one practices it because it's hard to do and you don't want to do it. But that's a way of being able to do it, and in a safer way."

As much thought as he is giving his practice over the coming weeks, Head knows he is short of time in the middle.

He has good reason to be unfazed; India have learnt the hard way that a disrupted lead-in has made the left-hander even more dangerous against them in recent times.

After hardly picking up a bat for two months ahead of the World Test Championship final against Rohit Sharma's men in London last year, Head peeled off a stunning 174-ball 163 to lead Australia to their maiden WTC title. 

Months later, the ODI opener torched India again in another ICC decider. This time, in Ahmedabad in what was expected to be the completion of the hosts' unbeaten run through the World Cup, Head posted 137 from 120 balls to seal an unlikely triumph.

He was player of the match in both games.

It may have been coincidence, but the birth of his first child in September 2022 prompted his dominant run during the ensuing home summer, peeling off scores of 99, 175, 38no, 92, 0, 51 and 70 against West Indies and South Africa.

"Prep's not going to be an issue for me," Head said.

"I've spoken about it over the last little bit, but I've had experiences of time off into series and games … (having) some experiences from having time off and coming into games is nice.

"I'm feeling a lot different than I was during those other situations. Coming in here nice and relaxed, and feeling in a great space. Hopefully that continues and leans into performing and getting some runs for the boys.

"The way I felt after the New South (Wales Shield match), even though I didn't really feature much and didn't get a heap of runs, but just the way I felt during that week, the lead up and everything (was good).

"I didn't really feel like I needed to turn a five-Test (series) – or seven Tests when you go to Sri Lanka (for Australia's ensuing Test campaign) – into an eight (game) first-class period."

NRMA Insurance Men's Test Series v India

First Test: November 22-26: Perth Stadium, 1.20pm AEDT

Second Test: December 6-10: Adelaide Oval, 3pm AEDT (D/N)

Third Test: December 14-18: The Gabba, Brisbane, 11.20am AEDT

Fourth Test: December 26-30: MCG, Melbourne, 10.30am AEDT

Fifth Test: January 3-7: SCG, Sydney, 10.30am AEDT

Australia squad: (first Test only) Pat Cummins (c), Scott Boland, Alex Carey (wk), Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Josh Inglis, Usman Khawaja, Marnus Labuschagne, Nathan Lyon, Mitch Marsh, Nathan McSweeney, Steve Smith, Mitchell Starc

India squad: Rohit Sharma (c), Jasprit Bumrah (vc), Yashasvi Jaiswal, Abhimanyu Easwaran, Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, KL Rahul, Rishabh Pant, Sarfaraz Khan, Dhruv Jurel, Ravichandran Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Mohammed Siraj, Akash Deep, Prasidh Krishna, Harshit Rana, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Washington Sundar. Reserves: Mukesh Kumar, Navdeep Saini, Khaleel Ahmed