‘I didn’t know 4000 people knew me so well’: Travis Head about the hostile English crowd in the first Test

At one point in England’s second innings, even before the rest of his team-mates took their spots on the field, Travis Head was seen running to his position, in the front of the famous Hollies enclosure, the home of the noisy barracking parochial English fans. His demeanour even brought a rave from the Barmy Army who had tweeted “Biggest cheer of the day? Travis Head has been getting pelted all day the Hollies, but taken it like a true champ”.
At the end of the game, speaking to cricket.com.au’s podcast, Head talked about the experience.
“I got the tap on the shoulder and got sent out there in the second innings, maybe because I can take it,” Head said. ”You’ve got to win them over quickly, otherwise you’re in for a very long day. I copped my fair share – I didn’t know 4,000 people knew me so well. I had 4,000 people behind me and 10 blokes in front of me all giving me stick. The boys enjoyed it.”

There were two other events that Head would remember the Test for. England’s attempt to bounce him on a flat track and the aggressive field set for him against the offspinner Mooen Ali.
Head suggested that he wasn’t surprised the bouncer attack as England’s bowling coach David Saker had used a similar approach against him in Australia’ domestic cricket when he was coaching Victoria.
“”With my scoring rate they were always going to come somewhere (different), whether it be wide with six or seven gullies and a couple of deep points, whether it’s at my stumps with a stacked leg-side field, or bouncers with a stacked leg-side field,” he said.“They were the three plans I had in my head around where they were going to go, wicket depending.” It was a flat track and England didn’t have the pace of Mark Wood to go at him full pelt with that approach; it remains to be seen how Head handles it in the second Test at Lord’s.

Moeen Ali bowled at him with mid-on and mid-off in the circle, and eventually getting Head smearing one to midwicket in the first innings, and caught behind at slips with a devilish turner in the second.
“It was disappointing to get out, but it was just execution. I felt like it was there, I just got a bit close to it,” said Head about his first-innings dismissal. “But I was pleased I didn’t overplay the situation. With having them (mid-on and mid-off) up, I could have quite easily been a lot more aggressive but I felt like I waited for my opportunities and picked them off slowly. He’s got some beautiful balls in him as well, so I was conscious of running past one or being beaten one, which in the second innings he bowled me a really nice ball. A really good battle.”