Travis Head smashed 163 against India in the first innings of the ongoing World Test Championship final
Indian and Pakistani cricket fans’ rivalry has reached a surprising new level on the internet – Travis Head’s bat. In the World Test Championship final between Australia and India, Head scored a blistering century in the first innings. Head and Smith combined for a counterattacking knock that guided Australia to an imposing total of 469, putting great pressure on the Indian side. At The Oval in London, Head’s innings ended at 163 (174), but the damage had already been done, and Australia was in control.
A keen-eyed Pakistani cricket fan noticed Head was using a Gray-Nicolls bat. Pakistani captain and star batter Babar Azam gifted Head a bat in 2022. Pakistan supporters took advantage of the connection to have a laugh at the expense of the Indian fans.
In the final game of the WTC cycle, Head scored his first overseas century at The Oval, the same bat manufacturer that Babar uses. In the WTC final, fans on Twitter rejoicingly praised Babar for inadvertently causing India’s fall. “Babar gifted his bat to Travis Head in 2021, and the rest is history,” one fan said.
Video of Babar gifting his bat to Travis
The reason behind Travis head yesterdays performance😂😂
— Vishal Jeevan (@vishaljeevan_) June 8, 2023
ohh babar you are such a nice guy but please be kind on indians sometime🤣🤣#WTCFinal2023 #BabarAzam #TravisHead pic.twitter.com/d4ph2z0d0l
@babarazam258 Travis Head saved bobby's bat for this day. 🤣🤣🤣 #AUSvsIND pic.twitter.com/DUdrFkgp3I
— Mirza Sahib (@Mirzasahib123) June 9, 2023
Performance you know, Reason you don't😂😂.
— دانیال عامر (@daniyalamir809) June 8, 2023
King give his bat to Travis Head and he scored a winning 167 runs.#WTCFinal2023 #WTC23Final #BabarAzam𓃵 pic.twitter.com/tThspcAeN9
Another claim claimed that Babar Azam’s hand was responsible for Kohli’s re-success in Asia Cup 2022 and making Travis Head the [most] successful batter in the ICC Test Championship. The claims were answered by Indian fans, some of which are as follows.
“Yes, Pakistan is playing the WTC final vs Australia. Babar’s captaincy and batting took them to the final,” one sarcastic fan wrote with crying emojis. “But Pakistan will never make it to the final of the WTC, they will only watch India playing in the final and crying,” another posted.
“How many centuries or fifties does Babar have [at The] Oval?” another posted with a series of laughing emojis. This is referring to the fact Azam has never played at the famous London ground.
It remains a tall task, however, as India trail by 318 runs with only 5 wickets left at the end of day 2. The difference between the two teams is evident in Head’s innings, regardless of whether he was inspired by Babar Azam.
