Head opens up on comeback to Test side in 2021 following Allan Border Medal win

Melbourne [Australia], February 3 : Australian opener Travis Head, who secured his first-ever Allan Border Medal on Monday opened up on his resurgence in international cricket back in 2021 after being dropped from the team and central contract list.
Opener Head and all-rounder Annabel Sutherland secured the top honours at the Australian Cricket Awards 2025, winning the Allan Border Medal and Belinda Clark Award for the Men's and Women's Cricketer of the Year respectively.
Head was Australia's top run-getter last year, with 1,399 runs in 29 matches and 35 innings at an average of 42.39, with four centuries and five fifties. His best score was 154*. In Tests, he scored 608 runs at an average of 40.53 in nine Tests and 15 innings, with three centuries and a fifty. His best score was 140. In ODIs, he made 252 runs in five matches at an average of 63.00 and a strike rate of 120.00, with best score of 154*. In 15 T20Is, he scored 539 runs at an average of 38.50 and a strike rate of 178.47, with four fifties in 15 innings and best score of 80. He rose to the number one position in the ICC Men's T20I Rankings as well.
Head's journey towards this consistency was not an easy one. For the first four years of his career, Head was considered a raw, hard-hitting talent with immense potential, but could not convert it into consistent performances. Despite being appointed as South Australia's captain in 2015 and being drafted to Aussie white-ball sides a year later, Head took his time in finding his footing in the international game.
That resulted in plenty of frustration for Head and his fans alike and he was left out of the central contract list after a disappointing home Test series against India, in which he scored just 62 runs in three innings during two matches and struggled against Indian pace. In his first 19 Tests, he averaged 39.76, scoring 1,153 runs in 31 innings with two centuries and seven fifties at a strike rate of almost 50.
After that, a forgettable stint with Sussex in County Cricket followed, in which he scored just 183 runs in 11 innings, searching for a perfect template for his game. During his final knock in the county tenure, Head simply decided to slog and come hard at everything served to him, scoring 49 in 46 balls. This was when the left-hander found his answer: Backing his strengths and instincts without worrying too much about consequences.
A memorable return to the Aussie cricket scene followed for this promising batter, having earned the 2022 State Player of the Year award for South Australia. His scoring rate was on an uptick, as he scored 440 runs in six matches and 10 innings at an average of 44.00 and a strike rate of 72.84 during Sheffield Shield 2021-22. He also scored two centuries and a fifty.
Head's breakthrough innings was a 152-run knock in just 148 balls against England at Brisbane during the Ashes, which helped him get the Australian Men's Test Player of the Year prize. He top-scored in the Ashes series win at home, with 357 runs at an average of 59.50 and an incredible strike rate of 86.50, with two centuries and a fifty to his name.
Since then, Head has not looked back. He has scored title-winning centuries for his country during the ICC World Test Championship and ICC Cricket World Cup finals against India in 2023, becoming a villain-like figure among Indian fans who would spoil the Men in Blue's happy run in an ICC tournament effortlessly. He went on to become his side's go-to man in crisis situations.
While his white-ball game was not always a problem and he delivered gems every now and then, he took things to the next level in Tests, scoring 2,525 runs in 36 Tests since his return to the side in 2021, at an average of 45.09 and a strike rate of 81.32, with seven tons and 11 fifties to his name in 60 innings and best score of 175.
Speaking about his return to the side in 2021, Head said as quoted by cricket.com.au, "Coming home (from Sussex) and realising I needed to pull my finger out to be a chance to get back to Brisbane in the first Test, it fell into place."
"I played well in a couple of games leading up to that series, and was able to get myself into the squad and that is sometimes half the battle. Then once I was there and found out I was playing, it was just 'alright, let's have a crack at it and see how it goes'."
"It quite easily could have been one more series, then back to South Australia. I understood that, and I was fine with that - if it was 25 Tests and done, at least I gave it a crack. So I am very pleased that it worked that day, and then very pleased with how consistent I have been at it. There is a lot of moments throughout the period where it could have gone either way," he concluded his point.
Head admitted being given the captaincy of his state team at a young age of 22 led to him being "grown up too early" and now he is displaying his youthful side in his batting and celebrations after gaining more comfort and confidence.
"I might have grown up too early, so I might be winding the clock back in the last few years. Definitely, I am more relaxed, and I have been more me," he said.
"I have spoken a lot about being a young captain and wanting to impress and earn respect within the group and, doing that at a young age, I was still myself but probably was withdrawn and always had a fear of missing out."
"I just did not know where I stood and wanted everyone to like me. In the last three or four years, I understand that is not going to be the case. I am not going to please everyone, I am not going to keep everyone happy but it has also made me who I am and I have definitely enjoyed myself over the last three or four years in this cricket team."
"One thing I have been able to bring into the team is, I hope, everyone has a laugh now and then and enjoys my company. They are not always going to, I know that but I think I am just more relaxed over the last three or four years, that has transpired into my game and that has transpired into to my family life as well.
"A growing family (with wife Jess and children Milla and Harrison) has been amazing and, in the same breath, playing really good cricket. So work is good and family is good - it is a nice place to be," he concluded.