Travis Head hits back at former Aussie legends over criticism
What's the story
Australia's opening batsman, Travis Head, has hit back at criticism from former Test players Matthew Hayden and Allan Border. He said it was "unfairly judged a fair bit from a group of past players, pretty much that put the bullet through a lot of players," which he thought was unfair and did not single out any pundit directly. The remarks were made during a press conference after Hayden slammed selectors for recalling Nic Maddinson over Josh Inglis and Cameron Green.
Defense
'Unfairly judged a fair bit from a group of past'
Head defended the selectors' decision to recall Maddinson, who has been away from Test cricket for nearly a decade.
He said, "I think it's unfairly judged a fair bit from a group of past players, pretty much that put the bullet through a lot of players."
The 34-year-old replacement has a First-Class average of 37.11 but Head praised his abilities and the benefits of choosing experienced players for Test cricket.
Critique
'We need mature guys'
Hayden had accused the selectors of "disrespecting First-Class cricket," saying batters should have an average of 45 runs or more before being considered for Test selection.
In response, Head said, "We need mature guys that know what they need to be doing."
He emphasized the importance of experienced players in Test cricket and defended Maddinson's recall despite his lower first-class average.
Suggestion
'I have laughed at a fair bit of it'
Former Australia captain Border suggested that Head would face his toughest test as an opener against the South African bowling attack.
He even said Head would be better off batting at number five.
To this, Head said, "I have laughed at a fair bit of it because if a traditional opening batter had pushed out the same sort of numbers in his first 20 innings, I think he'd be pretty safe and not talked about in the way that it has been talked about."