Head backed to rebound and avoid selection squeeze

But veteran spinner Nathan Lyon said his close mate was determined to have a major influence come Boxing Day at the MCG, where he scored a century last summer against New Zealand.

“Hundred per cent I am backing him [Head] for the Boxing Day Test match. Obviously, there is close connection there between Travis and myself,” Lyon said.

“Travis has my support and everyone else’s support in that changeroom. I know that he didn’t have the Adelaide Test match that he wanted or had planned for but I have got no doubt he will come out on Boxing Day and have a, hopefully, great Test match for Australia.”

Head could find himself in a selection battle with fill-in opener Matthew Wade and young all-rounder Cameron Green, and selectors could opt for the selfless Wade to return to his customary No.6 slot and retain Green because of his varied skills and the fact he is the future of the team.

Head is averaging 40.66 after 18 Tests, including two centuries, but finds himself caught between being regarded as a potential future Australian captain yet still needing to rubber-stamp his spot in the XI in the way Marnus Labuschagne has done over the past 18 months.

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Where Head has a point to prove, vice-captain Pat Cummins praised Lyon for the manner in which he maintained a disciplined line in Adelaide, particularly to batting wall Cheteshwar Pujara, whom he eventually he eventually had snapped up at leg slip by Marnus Labuschagne.

Pujara was the man the Australians could not dislodge two years ago but in Adelaide they dismissed him for a sluggish 43 off 160 deliveries in the first innings and for a duck in the second when Josh Hazlewood and Cummins sparked India’s “Adelaide 36ers” horror show.

Lyon, nine wickets shy of becoming only the third Australian to the 400 club, said the home side had more plans in place should Pujara get going.

“We spoke about him in depth before the series started. It was good to see a couple of plans come off in Adelaide but we have a couple more things up our sleeve hopefully if he does get in that we can deploy,” Lyon said.

“He is a world-class batter, so it’s always fun challenging yourself against the best players in the world and Pujara is definitely one of those guys.”

Lyon said it was the shape of his deliveries, rather than an increase in speed that he now often employs, that was “the most dangerous thing” when it came to combating the best batsmen.

The Australians were due to hold their first training session at the MCG on Wednesday, having settled into their Melbourne digs – complete with all the bio-security requirements.

Having enjoyed some added rest after victory inside three days in Adelaide, the home side is now determined to strengthen its grasp on the Border-Gavaskar Trophy, with three Tests remaining.

That hope has been buoyed by MCG curator Matt Page’s confidence that he can deliver a similar sporting pitch to what was unveiled in Australia’s 247-run win last summer.

“We’re on a journey to ensure consistency in our pitches and last year’s ICC rating was a great vote of confidence to what we’ve been aiming to achieve,” Page said.

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Lyon said he didn’t think it would be difficult for the tourists to regroup, having been a part of an Australian side that was fired out for 47 in a loss in Cape Town in 2011 but that rebounded to win the next Test.

“We are expecting them to come out firing and not have any scars from the other day. Cricket’s a new game, new day, every day, so you can’t look too far back,” he said.

“We can’t go out there expecting we will bowl them out for 50 again.”