Former England fast bowler Steve Harmison believes Australia would be taking a gamble by persisting with Travis Head as a Test opener, warning the move has the potential to destabilise both the top order and the middle order at the same time.
Writing a column for News Corp ahead of the second Test in Brisbane, Harmison said Head “deserves to stay at the top of the order” after his match-winning century in the Perth Test as a makeshift opener in the absence of injured Usman Khawaja.
But Harmison cautioned: “it’s a deceptively tricky call and Australia is putting a lot at risk. Where do you go if he starts nicking off on a Brisbane seamer? Suddenly you have two new openers on trial.
“I don’t mind the push for Head to stay as opener but it’s a bigger gamble than it looks for it completely changes the dynamics and mentality of the side.
“You can’t bring back Usman Khawaja because once you drop a 38-year-old he is gone forever. And, if the experiment doesn’t work, you cannot be rescued by Head down the list because you’ve already used him up.
“And what if the move half works? What if Head fails at opener but say, Josh Inglis takes flight at number five? What would you do then?
“Australia has six different openers since David Warner retired and theres a sense they are snatching at it again.
Travis Head. (Photo by Gareth Copley/Getty Images)
“If the experiment doesn’t work, you cannot be rescued by Head down the list because you’ve already used him up.”
Harmison said Australia’s recent dominance was built on the reliability of a settled top three and the explosive power of Head in his established middle-order role.
“Australia have said ‘we will play the long game, we will make your bowlers deliver more than 120 overs and bowl four or five spells.’ All that changes if Head goes up the order.”
And even if Head continues to score quickly, Harmison doubts whether he can reproduce his usual impact against a moving ball at the Gabba. “There’s no guarantee the middle men would have the same spark or that he would be as dynamic when the ball was fresh and the wicket was seaming.”
Turning his attention to England, Harmison said the heavy defeat in Perth was no shock.
He compared it to the 2005 Ashes opener at Lord’s, when England were crushed but sensed Australia were beatable after bowling them out twice. This current England side, however, lacks the adaptability that team possessed.
“The trouble with this group is that they are so insular,” Harmison wrote.
“They don’t like criticism and don’t take advice very well. Their standard line is ‘this is the way we play,’ but if they cannot change that, I sense they may face another heavy defeat.”
He questioned whether England have a credible batting plan for Brisbane, especially after losing three quick wickets in their second innings in Perth when well placed, adding: “The game suddenly felt gone long before it should have.”
While he believes England can still spring something unpredictable, saying “it would not shock me to see them chase down 350 at the Gabba”, he expects the inconsistency to continue.
“They will be brilliant when they win and horrendous when they lose… they will go two steps forward and one step back,” Harmison wrote.
“I sense the public’s tolerance with this England team will be defined over the next six weeks,” he said. “But the only certainty is that England will not change their attitude.”
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