Australia vs India: Travis Head hits 140 before India crumble as hosts dominate day two
It was a memorable day for Adelaide-born Hyde as he scored a stunning century in front of a packed crowd on familiar soil.
It was a Pirates-style game full of trademark wicket-taking as he chipped, flicked, pulled and bowled effortlessly to reach triple figures.
In fact, 113 of his runs came from both sides of the stumps, with Indian bowlers feeding his two strongest scoring areas.
However, there are occasional moments of good fortune in a collision that is completely at odds with the way most Australian players approach the game.
In the 68th over, Hyder bowled Ashwin for a towering six and then tried again in the next ball but the ball hit the sky only to be caught by Siraj with a diving catch. ball.
His score at that time was 76, and Australia’s place in this Test match might not have been that optimistic if given the chance.
One of Hyde’s strongest qualities, however, is that moments like this don’t faze him and he continued his cavalier style throughout the remainder of the spell at the crease.
He achieved his century with a leg-side hit off Siraj to reach the 111th delivery milestone, shaking the bat in tribute to his newborn son before saluting the crowd.
There’s certainly something about batting at home that appeals to South Australians. According to CricViz, he scored 634 runs with three centuries in nine Test innings at the Adelaide Oval.
79.25 is almost double his career Test average of 41.96.
The 30-year-old reached his 140-run tally with a fine six-wicket haul to knock Siraj off his legs before finally being bowled when the Indian seamer hammered him collapsed.
A brief verbal exchange followed with Siraj, who chose to see him off considering India’s predicament. The Australian batsman lingered for a while and gave it his all before walking away.
