Travis Head to Skip Pakistan White-ball Series for Family Time and Mental Reset Ahead of India Tests

Australia’s premier batter, Travis Head will not be part of the national side’s white-ball series against Pakistan at home as he plans to spend some quality time with his family to mentally refresh himself ahead of the highly anticipated Border Gavasakar Trophy 2024, a five-match Test series against India, starting November 22 in Perth.

According to cricket.com.au, Head will enjoy “a rare clear break from cricket in the lead-up to the opening Test against India at Perth Stadium from November 22, with his preparation for that series yet to be fully finalised”.

Head, who is expecting his second baby with wife Jess, is taking a break from next month’s three-match ODI Series against Pakistan and won’t feature in the subsequent T20 campaign against the same opposition.

The 30-year-old has been a part of the Australian setup across all three formats but in the coming times, he hopes to prioritize his family in the coming days.

“I’ll probably make decisions in the future around family more, and what drives me to play is probably more my family and my teammates,” Head said during official announcement of his one-year BBL deal to remain with Adelaide Strikers.

Most cricketers would want to get some game time under their belt. But Head plans on staying away from the bat and relax before he gets back to training with the squad.

“I probably won’t hit for the next little bit, I’ll probably just chill,” Head said.

He does not see himself in the same mould like his Aussie teammates like Marnus Labuschagne and Steve Smith who look to practice in the nets for hours to ensure they are ready for match day. Head on the other hand wants to get that hunger for runs which means he has to stay away from the nets to ensure he remains hungry for runs.

“If I bat every day it will become boring, if that makes sense. I’m not built like Marnus (Labuschagne) or Smithy (Steve Smith) who can bat day-in and day-out. I want to be excited around the fact of batting, I want to be hungry for runs,” he explained his process.

He backs his technical game to help him get through the big challenges after practicing it over the years and just needs to work on his mental side of things to ensure that he can deliver his best performances for the national side.

“I’ve been batting a fair bit and I don’t need it. Over the years, I have worked out I’ve played better sometimes when I’ve had a little bit of a spell from batting,” he said.

“I’m already thinking about it, but I think that mental refresh and walking into the nets … I’m someone who needs energy, who looks forward to batting and who’s excited about batting,” he added.

He gave some insight into how he will train before India series.

“I’ll continue to do a bit of work in the gym and run a little bit, so I’ll do that over the next couple of weeks and as I get closer to whether it be a Shield game or going to Perth (India Test) for prep, I’ll start batting a bit more and start working on things,” Head concluded.

(with PTI Inputs)