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- AUS vs ENG Highlights, 1st Ashes Test Day 2: Travis Head's 123 powers Australia to 8-wicket win over England; first two-day Ashes since 1921
AUS vs ENG Highlights, 1st Ashes Test Day 2: Travis Head's 123 powers Australia to 8-wicket win over England; first two-day Ashes since 1921
The contest, played in intense heat and in front of a vocal crowd, swung dramatically after England began day two with a narrow advantage. Their position looked comfortable at 65 for 1, but the afternoon session brought a collapse that altered the match entirely. Scott Boland rediscovered rhythm and accuracy, removing Ben Duckett, Ollie Pope and Harry Brook in a rapid burst. Mitchell Starc, who had already taken a career-best 7-58 on the opening day, added Joe Root and Ben Stokes to complete a ten-wicket haul.
A lower-order partnership between Gus Atkinson and Brydon Carse pushed England to 164, setting Australia a target of 205. But the chase quickly became one-sided. With Usman Khawaja still managing back stiffness, Head was sent in to open and immediately seized control of the innings. He hammered England’s attack, clearing the infield with ease, striking multiple sixes and racing to a half-century in 36 balls. His eventual 69-ball hundred — one of the highlights of the match — carried Australia to within touching distance of victory.
Head reflected on the whirlwind outcome, saying: “Wow, what a couple of days. It’s been unbelievable… To be able to contribute the way I did, it feels pretty special.” Stokes acknowledged the damage, admitting England were left “a little bit shell-shocked” by the swing in play and Head’s scoring rate.
Debutant Jake Weatherald added a brisk 23 before falling to a miscued pull, leaving Head and Marnus Labuschagne to continue the chase. Even after Head departed for 123, the result was only a formality. Labuschagne’s calm 51* and Steve Smith’s brief stay sealed the eight-wicket win.
The match’s brevity, shaped by fast scoring and equally fast collapses, set the tone for what promises to be an intense series.
- Marnus Labuschagne 26 (34)
- Travis Head 101 (70)
Jofra Archer to Marnus Labuschagne, Short and on middle, Marnus Labuschagne pulls it to mid-wicket and calls Travis Head for one. The fielder hits the stumps at the batter's end, but Head has dragged his bat inside the crease in time.
Jofra Archer to Travis Head, Back of a length and around leg, Travis Head nudges it towards fine leg for a run.
Jofra Archer to Marnus Labuschagne, Pitched up and on off, Marnus Labuschagne moves back in his crease and clips it through square leg for a run.
Jofra Archer to Marnus Labuschagne, Another bouncer, on middle, Marnus Labuschagne ducks under it again.
Jofra Archer to Marnus Labuschagne, FOUR! Marnus Labuschagne joins the party! Short of a length and around middle. Marnus backs away to give himself room and plays a forehand smash like a tennis player. He connects well and hits it to the long off fence for a boundary. 150 UP FOR AUSTRALIA. They need 54 runs to win now.
Jofra Archer to Marnus Labuschagne, A bouncer now, on middle, Marnus Labuschagne ducks under it.
- Marnus Labuschagne 20 (29)
- Travis Head 100 (69)
Gus Atkinson to Marnus Labuschagne, Pitched up and on middle, Marnus Labuschagne works it wide of mid on for a run.
Gus Atkinson to Marnus Labuschagne, On a length and on middle, Marnus Labuschagne clips it to mid-wicket.
Gus Atkinson to Marnus Labuschagne, Good length and around off, Marnus Labuschagne leaves it alone.
Gus Atkinson to Travis Head, HUNDRED FOR HEAD! One of the best Ashes tons ever. This has been an incredible knock from him. His 10th in Test cricket and it has come in just 69 balls. This is short again and on middle, Travis Head backs away to cut it but gets a top edge. The ball loops up but falls safely in front of short third. They cross as the backward point fielder collects it to his front-right. Head punches the air in delight and swings his bat like a sword. The crowd is on its feet, and this is also the joint 3rd fastest hundred for an Aussie in Tests. Adam Gilchrist still holds the fastest Test hundred by any Australian (57 balls vs England in 2006, at WACA), followed by Jack Gregory (67 balls vs South Africa in 1921, at Johannesburg). Travis Head now joins the list, equalling David Warner in 69 balls.
Gus Atkinson to Travis Head, FOUR! Head on 99 now! Gus Atkinson lands this back of a length and around middle. Travis Head makes room again, stays leg side of the ball and smacks it over extra cover for a boundary. The crowd is absolutely loving it.
Gus Atkinson to Travis Head, WIDE! Tries the bouncer, on middle, but this one is way too high for the batter. Travis Head lets it go. Called a wide.
Gus Atkinson to Travis Head, Short of a length and on leg, tries to target the body of the batter. Travis Head makes room and cuts it away to deep point for a brace. He moves to 95 now.
- Marnus Labuschagne 19 (26)
- Travis Head 93 (66)
Jofra Archer to Marnus Labuschagne, Hard length and around off, Marnus Labuschagne opens the face of his bat and steers it to backward point.
Jofra Archer to Travis Head, Full again and on middle and leg, Travis Head clips it through mid-wicket for one.
Jofra Archer to Travis Head, Swing and a miss! Nervous 90s... umm... not for Travis Head. Much fuller this time, on leg, Travis Head clears his front leg away and has a wild swing across the line but only connects with thin air.
Jofra Archer to Travis Head, Goes short again, on middle, Travis Head rides the bounce well and keeps it out on the pitch.
Jofra Archer to Marnus Labuschagne, Short of a length and on middle, Marnus Labuschagne rolls his wrists and pulls it along the ground towards deep square leg for a single. Australia need 68 runs to win now!
Jofra Archer to Marnus Labuschagne, Back of a length and on the sixth stump line, Marnus Labuschagne lifts his bat and lets it to go to the keeper.
- Travis Head 92 (63)
- Marnus Labuschagne 18 (23)
Gus Atkinson to Travis Head, Pitched up and on off, Travis Head drives it firmly but straight to extra cover.
Gus Atkinson to Travis Head, A bouncer now around leg, Travis Head backs away again but has to duck under it.
Gus Atkinson to Travis Head, FOUR MORE! Head moves into the 90s now. Back of a length but down the leg side, there to be put away. Travis Head gets inside the line of it and helps it on its way to the fine leg fence for another boundary.
Gus Atkinson to Travis Head, FOUR! This is just extraordinary batting! Short of a length and on middle, Travis Head moves to the leg side to create some room. He knows there is no protection in the deep on the off side and slashes it over backward point for a boundary.
Gus Atkinson to Marnus Labuschagne, Good length and on leg, Marnus Labuschagne works it through square leg for a single.
Gus Atkinson to Marnus Labuschagne, On a length and on middle, Marnus Labuschagne clips it to square leg.
Head is batting like there is no tomorrow. He has punched right through the heart of his English bowling attack and is in no mood to stop. This is not going into the third day if this bloke keeps batting like this. He has ruthlessly disrupted the bowlers' lines and lengths from ball one. And England have kept making mistakes of feeding deliveries in his strong areas, straying it all over the place.
- Travis Head 84 (59)
- Marnus Labuschagne 17 (21)
Jofra Archer to Travis Head, SIX! Wow, that is a shot and a half! The Barmy Army has gone very silent here now, and the Aussies are making all the noise. Jofra Archer bangs in a short ball and on off. Travis Head backs away to create some room. He extends his arms to reach out for it, but keeps his weight on the front foot and slaps it away over the long on fence for a biggie. Not many can do that to Archer.
Jofra Archer to Travis Head, FOUR! Travis Head is dealing in boundaries now! Short of a length and on middle, Head manages to get on top of the bounce and swats it away to the deep mid-wicket fence for four runs.
Jofra Archer to Travis Head, A good bouncer now, on middle, angles in sharply. Travis Head sways away and tries the same shot that Marnus Labuschagne played a few balls ago. However, he gets a bit cramped up and fails to connect.
Jofra Archer to Marnus Labuschagne, Back of a length and on middle, takes off a bit and angles in. Marnus Labuschagne tries to clip it away but cops a blow on his gloves as it rolls towards square leg. They cross.
Jofra Archer to Marnus Labuschagne, FOUR! Cheeky from Marnus! Jofra Archer lands this short of a length and on off. nips back in a bit. Marnus Labuschagne bends back to sway away and lets the ball come to him. He opens the face of his bat and upper cuts it over the slip cordon for a boundary.
Jofra Archer to Travis Head, On a length and on middle, Travis Head gets his front leg up in the air and clips it to deep square leg for a single.
Jofra Archer (4-0-18-0) returns, replacing Ben Stokes. Probably the final throw on the dice from Stokes?
- Marnus Labuschagne 12 (19)
- Travis Head 73 (55)
Gus Atkinson to Marnus Labuschagne, Short and just around off, Marnus Labuschagne decides late to leave it. He hangs his bat away from his body as the ball goes off the toe-end and rolls towards second slip.
Gus Atkinson to Travis Head, Good length and on off, Travis Head runs it down to third man for a single. Nelson on the board now.
Gus Atkinson to Travis Head, FOUR! Excellent shot! Gus Atkinson serves this very full and on off, Travis Head is not going to miss out on those. He leans on a bit and smashes it through covers for a boundary. Looks like Head does not want to take this to Day 3. And with that, Head gets past 1000 RUNS IN THE ASHES!
Gus Atkinson to Travis Head, Hits the length hard and on off, Travis Head stabs it out towards extra cover.
Gus Atkinson to Travis Head, Back of a length and on middle, Travis Head stays back and punches it toward mid off.
Gus Atkinson to Travis Head, Swing and a miss! Short of a length and just outside off, Travis Head slashes hard at it but gets beaten due to the extra bounce.
- Travis Head 68 (50)
- Marnus Labuschagne 12 (18)
Ben Stokes to Travis Head, Hard length and around off, Travis Head punches it to sweeper cover for a single. 17 runs off the over!
Ben Stokes to Travis Head, FOUR! Fourth boundary of the over! Ben Stokes bangs this into the pitch, on middle. Travis Head picks up the length early, swivels and pulls it with disdain in front of square on the leg side of four runs. Australia need exactly 100 runs to win now.
Ben Stokes to Travis Head, Good length and on off, Travis Head stays back and keeps it out to the off side.
Ben Stokes to Travis Head, FOUR! Make that three in a row! Overpitched delivery, on off, Travis Head gets underneath the ball nicely and drills it to the left of mid off towards the long off fence for four more runs. 100 UP FOR AUSTRALIA! Head on a roll here.
Ben Stokes to Travis Head, FOUR! TWO IN TWO! Ben Stokes lands this back of a length and on off, sits up nicley for the batter. Travis Head pivots a bit, gets on top of the bounce and heaves it away to the deep mid-wicket fence for another boundary.
Ben Stokes to Travis Head, FOUR! Put away! Fuller in length and outside off, Travis Head extends his arms to reach out for it and crunches it through covers for a boundary. It will be hard to stop Head here. Australia need 112 runs to win now.
- Marnus Labuschagne 12 (18)
- Travis Head 51 (44)
Gus Atkinson to Marnus Labuschagne, Much fuller and on middle, angling in a bit, Marnus Labuschagne tucks it to short mid-wicket.
Gus Atkinson to Marnus Labuschagne, Hits the length hard and on off, Marnus Labuschagne pats it in front of point and calls for the run, but Head sends him back.
Gus Atkinson to Marnus Labuschagne, Lands this on a good length and on the sixth stump line, Marnus Labuschagne watches it through and leaves it alone.
Gus Atkinson to Travis Head, Short of a length and on off, Travis Head opens the face of his bat and steers it past point for a run.
Gus Atkinson to Travis Head, Back of a length and around off, Travis Head stays back and punches it out towards short cover.
Set 205 to win, Head produced one of the quickest Ashes tons in recent memory, reaching three figures in 69 balls before closing on 123, an innings that turned the chase into a procession. Marnus Labuschagne remained unbeaten on 51 as Australia took a 1–0 lead in the five-match series.
England’s collapse earlier in the day shaped the result. Resuming with a 40-run advantage, they appeared settled at 65 for 1, but Scott Boland and Mitchell Starc ripped through the middle order in a span of four overs. Boland removed Ben Duckett, Ollie Pope and Harry Brook in 11 balls, while Starc accounted for Joe Root and Ben Stokes, completing a ten-wicket match haul after his 7-58 on day one.
A fighting stand between Gus Atkinson and Brydon Carse briefly steadied England before they were bowled out for 164 at tea. Stokes admitted his side had been “a little bit shell-shocked,” conceding that Head’s innings was “phenomenal.”
Promoted to open as Usman Khawaja battled back stiffness, Head dominated from the outset, striking cleanly on a surface that had tested others throughout the match. His assault left England with no chance of pulling the match back as Australia wrapped up the chase with ease.the opening day set the tone for a gripping four-day contest, blending high skill, raw pace, and historic moments in a truly chaotic start to the series.
Match Statistics
Venue
Perth Stadium, Perth
