Joe Root looking forward to Travis Head joining Yorkshire later in the county season
Head's county stint excites England star
England star Joe Root says he’s excited about seeing what young Australian Travis Head can do for his county side Yorkshire this season.
Head had a breakout domestic summer for South Australia in 2015-16, captaining the Redbacks to their first Sheffield Shield final appearance in two decades.
His sensational 53-ball hundred for the Adelaide Strikers was arguably the innings of the Big Bash League and the 22-year-old also blasted a double-ton in the Matador BBQs One-Day Cup in October.
His remarkable season earned him his international debut and also won him a spot in Australia’s squad for the limited-overs tri-series against the West Indies and South Africa next month, as well as a berth in the Indian Premier League for the Royal Challengers Bangalore.
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Following the Windies tour, Head is scheduled to join Yorkshire for the second half of the English county season, linking against with Strikers coach Jason Gillespie.
Root, a product of Yorkshire’s famous academy, says he’s been impressed by what he’s seen of the Australian youngster.
"I've seen him play in the Big Bash and in the Sheffield Shield and wow, he’s performed really well over the last couple of years." Root told reporters at the launch of the NatWest T20 Blast.
"Playing in the IPL, I’m sure he’ll have loved that opportunity and learnt loads from it.
"If he can pass some of his knowledge on and continue to perform like he has done in the NatWest T20 Blast, I’m sure he’ll bring a lot to the table to our club."
The exact length of Head's time at Yorkshire remains unclear; the left-hander was this week named in 24-man group of players to represent Australia A during their winter series this year.
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Australia A will play a series of first-class and one-day matches in north Queensland from July 30 to September 18, with selection for the specific games yet to be announced, meaning its not yet known precisely how long Head's UK stint will last.
But Yorkshire don’t expect his Australian commitments to prevent him from being available from mid-July to the end of August - where he's set to replace New Zealand captain Kane Williamson as their overseas player in all formats - meaning Head could return to Australia for the A side's two first-class matches in September.
The standout team in English domestic cricket in recent years, Yorkshire have been crowned champions of the County Championship for the past two seasons.
While their success has been largely based on home-grown players, a number of Australians also played a part in Yorkshire’s dominance.
Former Australia fast-bowler Gillespie took over as coach in 2012 and led them to promotion from Division Two in his first season. They then finished runners-up in Division One the following year, before claiming back-to-back titles in 2014 and 2015.
Victorians Aaron Finch and Glenn Maxwell have also had stints at Headingley; in their Championship title-winning seasons, Finch played eight four-day games along with 16 T20s while Maxwell has represented the club in all three formats during that time.
Root was glowing in his praise for the hard-hitting pair, not just for their on-field exploits, but also for how Finch and Maxwell helped younger players during their time at the club.
"They obviously have spent a lot of time playing Big Bash cricket,," Root said. "They showed the young lads the way to handle big-pressure games.
"They play in front of crowds of 30-40,000 on a regular basis over there.
"For young lads (at Yorkshire) who’ve never really experienced that before, that can be something that gets to you.
"To go into (games with big crowds) with a bit of idea on what it’s like is quite nice for those younger players. It means it doesn’t shock you quite as much when you get out there.
"Also, the way (Finch and Maxwell) think about their batting, the way they think about chasing scores down, for example. When you get off to a good start, they know when to keep going and when they need to rein it in.
"They were both very good at passing on all of their experience to the rest of the squad.
"They tried to make sure that (their stint) wasn’t just about scoring runs on the field but about improving the whole team as much as they could.
"I’m really grateful that they did that and I’m sure (Head) coming in this year will do the same thing as well."