"He just puts the pressure right back on the bowlers": Pat Cummins lauds Travis Head for his performance in WTC final

Australian skipper Pat Cummins heaped praise on Travis Head for his exceptional display with the bat against India in the World Test Championship final 2023 at the Oval, London.

Australian skipper Pat Cummins heaped praise on Travis Head for his exceptional display with the bat against India in the World Test Championship final 2023 at the Oval, London. With his aggressive batting approach, Head shattered the record list as he became the first player to score a century in the WTC final.

His knock of 163 and the 285-run partnership with Steve Smith in the first innings proved to be a game-changing moment for the Australian team. After the match, Cummins praised the left-handed batter for his performances throughout the campaign.

"We made the most of it (losing the toss). We were certainly going to bowl. The way Travis and Smithy put on that partnership, gave us the comfort after a nervy morning. He (Head) has been brilliant right throughout this campaign, started with the Ashes a couple of years ago. He just puts the pressure right back on the bowlers and suddenly you are thinking about how to contain runs rather than taking wickets. We left day one feeling like we were on top of the game," Cummins said after the match as quoted by ICC.com. Coming to the match, India started day five at 164/3, with Virat Kohli (44*) and Ajinkya Rahane (20*) unbeaten at the crease.

However, a game-changing over by Scott Boland, which saw him trap Virat for 49 and Ravindra Jadeja for a duck, started India's downfall. Rahane was dismissed by Mitchell Starc for 46 while Srikar Bharat (23) was dismissed by Nathan Lyon. The Indian batting line-up failed to put up a fight, bundling out for 234 runs in 63.3 overs to hand Australia their first-ever WTC title.

Lyon was the pick of the bowlers for Australia, taking 4/41. Boland took 3/46 while Starc got two wickets. Skipper Pat Cummins got one wicket. On day four, India ended at 164/3, with Virat Kohli (44*) and Ajinkya Rahane (20*) unbeaten at the crease. Skipper Rohit Sharma and Shubman Gill (18) gave the team a brisk start with a 41-run opening stand, but a contentional catch by Cameron Green on Boland's delivery ended the partnership.

A 51-run stand between Rohit and Cheteshwar Pujara helped India carry forward the chase with an attacking intent. But Lyon dismissed Rohit for 43 and Cummins removed Pujara for 27 to reduce India to 93/3. From that point on, Rahane and Virat formed a 71-run stand to end the fourth day strongly. Australia declared their innings at 270/8, gaining a lead of 443 runs. Australia was restricted to 24/2 at one point, but Marnus Labuschagne (41) and Steve Smith (34) brought back Australia into the game. Later, contributions from middle-order/lower-middle-order players like Cameron Green (25), a half-century from wicketkeeper-batter Alex Carey (60*) and his 93-run stand with Mitchell Starc (41) increased Australia's lead over India.

Ravindra Jadeja was the pick of the bowlers for India, taking 3/58. Umesh Yadav (2/54) and Mohammed Shami (2/39) got two wickets each while Mohammed Siraj got one scalp. In their first innings, India was bundled out for 296 runs. India trailed Australia by 173 runs, who had scored 469 runs in their first innings.

India's top order failed in their first innings. Rohit Sharma (15), Shubman Gill (13), Cheteshwar Pujara (14) and Virat Kohli (14) failed to post big scores. But contributions from comeback man Ajinkya Rahane (89 in 129 balls, 11 fours and a six), Shardul Thakur (51 in 109 balls with six fours) and Ravindra Jadeja (48 in 51 balls with seven fours and a six) helped India put on a fight after being restricted to 71/4. Pat Cummins (3/83), Nathan Lyon (2/19), Cameron Green (2/44), Scott Boland (2/59) and Mitchell Starc (2/71) were among the wickets for Australia.

Australia's 469 runs in the first innings were powered largely by centuries from Travis Head (163 in 174 balls, 25 fours and a six), and Steve Smith (121 in 268 balls, 19 fours). David Warner (43) and Marnus Labuschagne (26) made notable contributions, but Australia was reduced to 76/3. From that point, Head and Smith attacked Indian bowlers, hitting their centuries. Later in the innings, Alex Carey also provided some much-needed extra runs with a knock of 48. Siraj (4/108) was the leading bowler for India in the first innings. Shardul Thakur and Mohammed Shami got two wickets while Jadeja got one.

Travis Head was given the 'Player of the Match' title for his attacking 163. Brief Scores: Australia: 469 and 270/8 (Alex Carey 60*, Marnus Labuschagne 41, Ravindra Jadeja 3/58) won over India: 296 and 234 (Virat Kohli 49, Rohit Sharma 43, Nathan Lyon 4/41). (ANI)

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