Head’s 154 not out helps Australia thrash England

First ODI, Trent Bridge, Nottingham

England 315 (49.4 overs): Duckett 95 (91), Jacks 62 (56); Labuschagne 3-39, Zampa 3-49

Australia 317-3 (44 overs): Head 154* (129), Labuschagne 77* (61); Bethell 1-20

Australia won by seven wickets; lead series 1-0

Scorecard

Travis Head scored a stunning unbeaten 154 as Australia claimed a convincing seven-wicket win over England in the first one-day international at Trent Bridge.

After England had collapsed from 213-2 to 315 all out, Head’s magnificent innings helped Australia to knock off the runs with 36 balls to spare.

The 30-year-old opener put on an unbroken 148 with Marnus Labuschagne as he made the top ODI score by an Australia batter in England, to take the tourists to their highest successful ODI chase in England.

A comprehensive victory extends the world champions’ winning streak in ODIs to 13 as they took a 1-0 lead in the five-match series.

England were in a good position to put that unbeaten run under threat thanks to a fine knock of 95 from opener Ben Duckett and Will Jacks’ third ODI half-century, but crumbled late in the innings.

Part-time spinner Labuschagne had Duckett caught and bowled just shy of his hundred then removed Harry Brook, captaining England for the first time, in his next over to start the hosts’ slide.

Labuschagne and Adam Zampa, in his 100th ODI, took three wickets apiece as Australia bowled only spin for the last 18 overs of the innings and England’s innings unravelled.

Jacob Bethell gave another glimpse of his talent with a handy 35 to take the home side beyond 300 but they finished a long way short of what they would have wanted on a famously high-scoring ground.

Head had a moment of luck when he was dropped by Brydon Carse on six, albeit it would have been a stunning one-handed catch, but never looked back as he powered his way to a fantastic sixth ODI ton and Australia cruised to victory.

England will attempt to level the series in the second game at Headingley on Saturday.

England’s innings essentially started and ended with Duckett.

The left-hander got things moving with four boundaries in a Sean Abbott over and went from there.

Phil Salt was bowled by left-arm seamer Ben Dwarshuis, on his ODI debut for Australia, but Jacks came in and helped build a strong platform alongside Duckett.

Jacks played well with a number of eye-catching shots, while Duckett continued to pace his innings smartly.

He was quick to sweep the spinners, thumping a reverse to the fence off Zampa, and peppered the short leg-side boundary when Australia tried to unsettle him with short stuff.

In the Stokes and McCullum era, this was not unlike a Test knock from Duckett and it was only through taking on the bouncers that there was any discernible difference in the areas the left-hander was scoring his runs compared to a red-ball match.

There was intent to every shot as he moved the field around and ran well between the wickets to get England, who averaged 367 in their last six ODIs at Trent Bridge, to the point where they would have been confident of posting something similar.

A second ODI century seemed a formality but five runs from that milestone, he offered up a return catch from an innocuous Labuschagne delivery and was gone.

It was the turning point of the innings as Labuschagne ousted Brook in his next over and the ensuing collapse left England well short.

As early as it was in the innings – and as tough a chance as it was – Carse dropping Head felt like a significant moment.

His recent form has been such that it felt inevitable he would make England pay.

The short boundaries and fast outfield makes Trent Bridge an inviting place to bat for anyone, but few have the tools to exploit those conditions in quite the way Head does.

There might be the odd play and miss or the occasional miscue but they are lost in a flurry of full-blooded shots, crunched to, or over, the boundary.

Immense power and immaculate timing are combined with an uncanny ability to find the gaps and, once Head got going, England were left waiting for a mistake that never came.

An inexperienced England attack were coolly dismantled with even senior bowlers Jofra Archer and Adil Rashid unable to stem the flow of runs.

Head had broken the back of the chase and, with Labuschagne going nicely alongside him, could have just picked his moments to take the attack to the bowlers.

Instead, he opted to get the game done in a hurry – pummelling the ball both sides of the wicket as he hit a remarkable 20 fours and five sixes in a career-best ODI knock.

Illness had robbed Australia of key players such as Mitchell Starc, Josh Hazlewood and Glenn Maxwell but Head’s brilliance ensured they were not missed as the 50-over champions laid down a marker to begin the series.