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“Disgrace”. Australia selectors cop criticism for leaving Travis Head out

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Last Updated on 2 years by Charbel Coorey

Cricket News: “Disgrace”. Australia selectors cop criticism for leaving Travis Head out | Travis Head left out of Australia team

Australian middle-order batsman Travis Head’s exclusion from the playing XI attracted sharp reactions from all quarters after the visitors bundled out for 177 on the opening day of the first Test against India in Nagpur on Thursday.

Head, who has been in some fine form in the whites recently, was overlooked for Matthew Renshaw for the number five slot in the line-up. Renshaw made matters worse by being dismissed for a golden duck by Ravindra Jadeja.

Head had been one of the team’s mainstays in their run in Test matches last year, scoring 655 runs at an average of 50.38 across 15 innings with two centuries and three half-centuries to his name. He also had an incredible strike rate of 80.86 to show for the same. However, the Pat Cummins-led side opted to go with the duo of Renshaw and Peter Handscomb and gained little from the gamble eventually.

Reactions: Travis Head left out of Australia XI

Here are some of the most pertinent reactions to Head’s dropping from the side.

Setting all the noise aside, it was pretty apparent by early signs that the Australian team management would select Peter Handscomb in the XI – reportedly for his proficiency against spinners. On the other hand, Head hasn’t played a Test in India and his record in the subcontinent is arguably quite unimpressive. He averages 22.67, 7.67 and 30.50 in Pakistan, Sri Lanka and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) respectively. Head has only a solitary half-century to show for in the seven Tests that he has played combined in these three nations.

However, many expected him to get the nod ahead of Handscomb or Renshaw. To be fair, the 31-year-old Handscomb showed some good resistance against the Indian spinners but was eventually undone by Ravindra Jadeja after scoring 31 runs off 84 deliveries.

Should Head make the comeback in the following Tests? Let us know by tweeting at @cric_blog.

Tarkesh Jha
Tarkesh Jha
Tarkesh Jha is a media professional and cricket writer who has managed social media content, public relations (PR) and marketing related content for cricketer Ajinkya Rahane and cricket presenter and stand-up comedian Vikram Sathaye. Also, Tarkesh has been featured in some leading publications such as Sportskeeda, Khel Now, firstpost.com, and cnbctv18.com

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