Live Cricket Update – AUS vs IND 3rd Test Day 2 – Live

Shiva Jayaraman tells us how important Heads Wicket is for India:

Ominous and familiar signs for India as Travis Head quickly advances to 20 from 35 balls after surviving some good throws early in his encounter. He was a thorn in India’s side last year. Since the finale of the previous WTC cycle in June 2023, he has scored 748 runs in 11 innings at a strike rate of 105.94 across all formats and has made key contributions in clutch games.

In this series, by lunch on the second day of the Brisbane Test, Head had scored 260 of the 735 runs scored by Australia at the first attempt. The next highest is Marnus Labuschagne with 81 runs from four innings. Currently, Head’s contribution of 35.37% to his team’s total is the highest for a batter in a series of three or more matches since Brian Lara scored 688 of the 1540 runs scored by West Indies batters on the 2001-02 Sri tour scored Lanka. Including Lara’s performance, there were only five other instances of a batsman making a major contribution to team runs in a series of three or more games.

Andrew McGlashan also has a few thoughts:

Travis Head once again looms as a threat for India. After avoiding a first-ball duck for the fourth time in a row at the Gabba, he was ready despite being challenged by Akash Deep before lunch. Significantly, he came into play after the 30-over mark with a slightly softer ball. There is a sense that the mindset of Australia’s top flight has changed somewhat, where in conditions that have become more difficult in recent years, it is as much about the time they can soak up as the runs they score.

Batting averages have certainly fallen – in both international and domestic cricket in Australia – and while this should not always relieve batsmen of control, it has made the Australian middle order’s ability to counterattack an important part of their game.

“Probably in the last three years in Australia, since the ball change (an extra coat of paint and a prouder seam), it has been quite a challenge for top hitters,” said Steven Smith Channel 7 before playing. “I think you can see that in the numbers. If you go back five years, you need to have 450-500 on the board in the first innings to be in the game.

“If you put a three in front of it now, you’re well on your way to winning the game. Things have certainly changed, batting is probably as difficult as I’ve seen in Australia in the last 14 years, especially for top-class batsmen… (but) when you get to the 35-40 over mark, that ball stays pretty tough and guys like Travis Head and Mitch Marsh can score very quickly.”