Australian southpaw Travis Head became the first player to score a century in a World Test Championship final, after striking a counter-attacking ton against India at the Oval in London on Wednesday.
From the very first ball, Head read the surface well, judging the movement of the Duke ball as well as picking up the bowlers’ lines and lengths.
Not taking time to settle down, he went after the Indian attack from the get-go, turning the strike and finding boundaries at will.
He brought up his century in only 106 balls in the 65th over of the innings, choosing the marquee clash for the WTC title to score his maiden overseas century.
India began the second session in a similar way as they did the first, with speedster Mohammad Shami sending back Marnus Labuschagne for 26 (62). Shami struck off his very first ball after lunch with a delivery that was pitched right up, inducing Labuschagne into a drive. However, he missed the ball completely as it sneaked through his defence and clipped the bails.
In-form Travis Head then joined Smith at the crease, and the left- and right-handed pair picked up the pace of scoring. Both batters looked to find the fence every over, signalling their intent to push the scoring along.
In the first 10 overs of the second session, both batters struck a total of seven boundaries.
For the next four overs, however, Australia struggled to keep the scoreboard ticking over.
