New Delhi: Former Australia cricketer Simon O’Donnell believes left-handed opener Travis Head will captain Australia one day following his superb 137 in the 2023 Men’s ODI World Cup final against India. At the same time, he believes Head can be the skipper once Pat Cummins’ time as captain is over.
At the Narendra Modi Stadium on Sunday, Head notched up a sublime 120-ball 137, including hitting 15 boundaries and four sixes, for Australia to chase down 241 in 43 overs and claim their sixth World Cup title.
Head also became just the fourth cricketer in history of the World Cup to win Player of the Match awards in both semi-final and final, having previously won the award in the last-four clash against South Africa at Kolkata. He had also slammed a rapid 163 off 174 balls in the first innings against India to give Australia their first World Test Championship title at The Oval, London, in June this year.
“I think we’re looking at the next Australian captain in Travis Head. That won’t be too far down the track. He’ll probably have to give one of them (formats) away to be the Australian captain, I would think he’ll give T20 away at that stage. It’s a few years down the track. Pat Cummins basically signed the document last night. For as long as he’s fit and playing, he’ll be captain of Australia,” said O’Donnell to SEN Radio.
In the field, Head was hugely impactful in dismissing India skipper Rohit Sharma. He ran back from the cover region to complete a sensational back-pedalling catch. “It was no surprise he took that catch that got rid of Sharma and then made the hundred he did. He’s just a big game player.”
“Travis Head is just a superstar, an absolute superstar, and it doesn’t matter what form. I think he’s a Test match superstar, I think he’s a 50-over superstar, and I think he’s a T20 superstar,” added O’Donnell.