At lunch on the third day of the first Ashes Test at the Gabba on Friday, Travis Head hit a brilliant 152 to put Australia in command against England.
30 minutes before lunch, Australia was bowled for 425 in their first innings, giving them a comfortable 278-run advantage.
After surviving a difficult stretch before the break, England went to lunch with 23 for no wicket and a 255-run deficit.
Haseeb Hameed was on 10 and Rory Burns was not out at 13.
Burns, who was clean bowled by Mitchell Starc on the opening ball of the series on Wednesday, was lucky to survive the dreaded pair when he was called leg-before wicket on Starc’s sixth ball of the first over on Friday.
However, after analyzing the verdict, replays revealed that the ball had just missed the top of the middle stump, saving Burns’ life.
Head, who was controversially chosen ahead of Usman Khawaja for the Test, was outstanding.
Coming in with a score of 189-3, Head watched England’s David Warner and Cameron Green fall in quick succession as they attempted to mount a comeback.
Head, on the other hand, refused to be pinned down and unleashed a great counter-offensive, slamming England’s left-arm spinner Jack Leach in particular.
Head continued where he left off on Friday morning, flashing at anything wide and attacking Leach once more after blazing the third-fastest century in Ashes history in the final session on Thursday.
Head played and missed a few times, but he was rewarded for his stroke play, scoring 152 off only 148 balls, which included four enormous sixes and 14 boundaries.
Head completed his century with a pull shot through square leg off Leach, whose Test future seems doubtful after conceding 102 runs in 13 overs.
England, who were already in trouble after scoring only 147 runs in their first innings, didn’t help their case by dropping three catches throughout the session.
Chris Woakes dropped a chance, wicketkeeper Jos Buttler couldn’t manage a difficult caught behind from Mark Wood, and Hameed grassed a chance in the deep, again off Wood’s bowling.
Wood was rewarded for his persistent fast bowling with 3-85, including the wicket of Head, while English bowler Ollie Robinson was the most threatening with 3-58.
With statistics of 2-76, Woakes completed out a solid performance from the three seamers.
Scorecard
England first innings 147 (J. Buttler 39; P. Cummins 5-38)
Australia first innings (overnight 343-7)
D. Warner c Stokes b Robinson 94
M. Harris c Malan b Robinson 3
M. Labuschagne c Wood b Leach 74
S. Smith c Buttler b Wood 12
T. Head b Wood 152
C. Green b Robinson 0
A. Carey c Pope b Woakes 12
P. Cummins c Hameed b Root 12
M. Starc c Burns b Woakes 35
N. Lyon c Robinson b Wood 15
J. Hazlewood not out 0
Extras (b4, lb6, nb4, w2) 16
Total (104.3 overs) 425
Fall of wickets: 1-10 (Harris), 2-166 (Labuschagne), 3-189 (Smith), 4-195 (Warner), 5-195 (Green), 6-236 (Carey), 7-306 (Cummins), 8-391 (Starc), 9-420 (Lyon), 10-425 (Head)
Bowling: Woakes 25-76-2, Robinson 23-8-58-3, Wood 25.3-4-85-3 (1w, 1nb), Stokes 12-0-65-0 (1w 3nb), Leach 13-0-102-1, Root 6-0-29-1
Toss: England
Umpires: Paul Reiffel (AUS), Rod Tucker (AUS)
TV Umpire: Paul Wilson (AUS)
Match Referee: David Boon (AUS)
