Smith’s latest century, his first since the second Ashes Test at Lord’s in June 2023, was his tenth in 41 innings against India, equaling Joe Root’s record of 55 innings.
After just 19 runs in three innings in the series, the pressure was on Smith and he started rough and survived the lbw review without giving any shot to Mohammed Siraj.
His half-century was almost entirely on his feet before he gained confidence and started playing attacks down the ground, through covers and outside the box.
He moved from his half-century to a ton in just 57 balls, scoring his 33rd Test century, which puts him second on Australia’s all-time scoring list, eight behind Ricky Ponting.
Acceleration was also a key part of Head’s innings as the left-hander went from 20 at lunch to a century at tea break.
In the second half of his century, he scored just 44 balls, being particularly good at grabbing every length offered for a pull and an uppercut to the boundary.
One-third of Head’s Test centuries now against India, coupled with his match-winning knock of 137 inches last year’s World Cup final over 50 points, as former head coach Ravi Shastri claims on TV, which earned him the nickname “Travis Headache” in India.
