Travis Head To Succeed Pat Cummins As Test Captain_ Reports Make Surprising Claim
Photo : AP
Travis Head has been India's chief tormentor in the ongoing Border Gavaskar Trophy. The left-handed batter continued to punish India with his run-scoring spree with another hundred in Brisbane after Adelaide.
Head's ominous form especially against India has been a major talking point. Starting from the ICC ODI World Cup final to the Border Gavaskar Trophy, the 31-year-old has enjoyed his batting and dominated the Indian bowlers with over 600 runs in the last 7 innings.
His batting masterclass has also now pushed him to replace Pat Cummins as the Test captain for the Sri Lanka series, as per a report from Yahoo Sports. Cummins is all set to skip the upcoming two-match Test series against Sri Lanka for the birth of his second child and there's a growing sense that Head should be handed the mantle.
Steve Smith should be the obvious choice given his experience but the 35-year-old's position in the team is uncertain and Head certainly excels in this aspect. The southpaw has shown immense maturity across the formats and has established his authority in this Australian side as one of the most crucial squad members.
With a place in the World Test Championship final in the offing, Cricket Australia is unlikely to take a risk at this point and Smith could deputise in Cummins’ absence. Head could also be made the vice-captain in the long format and subsequently, he can be elevated to the highest order.
Cummins insisted family should also be prioritised amid the busy cricket schedule. As quoted by Yahoo Sports he said, "It's definitely a factor. It's pretty hard to plan exactly the day, but definitely. I missed a big chunk [of son Albie's early days] last time and I want to work out how we can spend a bit more time at home for that initial period this time.
"Within reason, no one is ever going to bat an eyelid if someone needs to put their family first. We're playing cricket, it's not the end of the world. We want people to have long, successful careers for Australia, and you can't just ask them to put their life on hold to go tour the world and forget about everything else. We're pretty open when it comes to family."
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