Perhaps the most perplexing yet key phenomenon in elite sports is the purple patch, a period where players lucky enough to experience feel nigh invincible no matter what they do. Travis Head has certainly been enjoying one for the last few years and was at it again in Galle, this time with the ball.
Sri Lanka spurned a good start in the second Test against Australia at Galle to find themselves reeling at 150/6 after winning the toss and opting to bat first. A 70-run second wicket stand between Dinesh Chandimal and the retiring Dimuth Karunaratne meant the side was cruising along early on on the dusty surface but the departure of the latter and Angelo Mathews in quick succession reined momentum back in the visitors’ favour. However, at 126/3, the encounter looked well poised with the incumbent batters crucial in deciding the fate of the match and the golden arm of Travis Head took it upon itself to tilt the game firmly in Australia’s favour.
Steve Smith brought Head into the attack in the 27th over and the part-time spinner was greeted with a boundary each from Chandimal and Kamindu Mendis, the latters off a top edge when trying to sweep the penultimate ball. Head responded by pulling his trajectory a bit shorter to good length, angled around the fourth turn with decent amounts of sidespin. Mendis, caught in two minds how to fend off the red leather hurling towards him, ended up poking at the ball off the back-foot with no conviction. A huge thick edge followed and Smith swallowed it at slip without much ado to dispatch the youngster.
Head was unsuprisingly ecstatic at having furthered his reputation for manufacturing key wickets out of thin air and held onto his right elbow with his other hand before shaking his right forearm and fingers vigorously as if they were on fire. Having scored a quickfire 50 last game after a brilliant series against India, it was an appropriate celebration for the man from South Australia who can do little wrong at the moment.
Head on fire
Superb
The wicket celebration from Travis Head. 😄 pic.twitter.com/vuMw5FSCe9
— Praveen kumar (@Naninaidu98) February 6, 2025
Not them remembering travis head’s catch in wc final and saying “khada hun aaj bhi vahin” 😭🙏🏻
— muskan (@__cosmogyral_) February 6, 2025
Holy moley
Holy Moley Travis Head of Australia is a dead ringer for a young David Boone. It’s definitely the moe & sunnies I reckon. 😊😂🤤 #AusvSriLanka
— Ray Wheeler (@constatine42) February 6, 2025
Proud
Very Proud Feeling
Travis Head Son Harshit Rana (KKR Qouta ) Taking Wickets Aganaist England pic.twitter.com/5803N0dHNr https://t.co/dTFmdTpj2W— CB (@PokkiriYedhava) February 6, 2025
#askstar If we face australia in champions trophy quarterfinal or final ! will we have found a solution for Travis Head?
— ARWAZ ALI (@ArwazAliKhan) February 6, 2025
Nice
That catch
Yashasvi reminds of Travis head with that catch. But what an effort to take that catch on his debut. Well done!👏 #YaahasviJaiswal #INDvENG
— Mihir Jain (@mihir0504) February 6, 2025
The funniest cricket meme involving Travis Head often revolves around his performances against India, particularly highlighting his knack for scoring big when facing the Indian team. Based on the current trends and memes from the web:
Travis Head as a “villain” against the blue…— 𝐃𝐮𝐫𝐠𝐞𝐬𝐡_𝐑𝐞𝐛𝐞𝐥 🦖 (@Durgesh_Rebel) February 6, 2025
Felt it
