The Ashes, fifth Test: Travis Head hundred revives Australia after top-order meltdown on Day 1

Travis Head returned from Covid-19 to smash a belligerent 101 and Cameron Green made 74 to revive Australia after a top-order collapse on the opening day of the day-night ultimate Ashes Test in opposition to England on Friday.

England’s all-seam assault had decreased Australia to 12-3 in a powerful begin for the vacationers, who’ve already misplaced the five-Test sequence following heavy defeats in Brisbane, Adelaide and Melbourne.Head placed on 71 with Marnus Labuschagne (44) and added 121 with Green as Australia reached 241-6 earlier than rain compelled early stumps within the pink-ball contest at Hobart’s Bellerive Oval.Alex Carey will resume on 10 on day two with Mitchell Starc, who was but to open his account.”Anything over 300 and I think it’s going to be a great start,” Head instructed reporters.”The conditions, pink ball… it’s (pitch) probably more bowler-friendly.”So something over 300 and batting so long as we presumably can tomorrow goes to be key and once we bowl, ensuring we establish the moments with the ball.”Earlier, England’s seamers blew away Australia’s top order in a frenetic first session, vindicating captain Joe Root’s decision to field under an overcast sky.Australia dropped Marcus Harris to accommodate both fit-again Head and Usman Khawaja, who scored twin hundreds in the last test in Sydney batting in the middle order.Ollie Robinson broke through in the sixth over when Zak Crawley took a catch at second slip to send back David Warner for a 22-ball duck.Crawley spilled Labuschagne off Robinson before the batsman had scored, diving to his left in what could have been a regular catch for Root at first slip.Khawaja edged Stuart Broad to depart for six, and Crawley made no mistake when Robinson induced an edge from Steve Smith, who fell for a duck.Labuschagne went on the attack, flicking Chris Woakes for a six before a bizarre dismissal. The right-hander shuffled outside the off stump and overbalanced. Broad’s delivery clattered onto his stumps.Head raced to a 112-ball century but fell immediately afterwards, offering a leading edge to Robinson at mid-on trying to hit Woakes over mid-wicket.Head’s second century of the series contained 12 boundaries.Mark Wood bounced out Green for 74, the all-rounder’s second fifty of the series, before rain interrupted play.England suffered another injury blow after Robinson suffered a back spasm that limited his bowling to only eight overs.”Those issues can come and go. We’re hoping with therapy in a single day, he can come again tomorrow, be match sufficient to bowl tomorrow,” fast bowling coach Jon Lewis told reporters.”We bowled fantastically effectively up entrance however felt motion went out the ball utterly after about 20 overs,” he mentioned in his evaluation of their bowling effort.Sam Billings made his Test debut for England changing the injured Jos Buttler behind the stumps.