ESPNcricinfo Awards 2024 men's ODI batting winner: Head of his game

As he cruised through to his century in just the 30th over of Australia's chase, Head channelled Chris Gayle by planting his helmet on his bat handle and hoisting them both aloft in triumph, as if to declare himself the new Universe Boss. And really, who could argue otherwise?

It was only Head's second ODI innings since his true coronation, against India in the 2023 World Cup final, but he was about to go higher and harder even than in that title-seizing knock of 137 from 120 balls.

On one of the purest batting surfaces in the world, and at a venue where Australia themselves had been pounded for 481 for 6 back in 2018, he made a mockery of what ought in theory to have been a stiff chase of 316.

Twenty fours and five sixes poured forth from his bat, and though he rode his luck in the opening overs of the powerplay, he did so like a master horse-whisperer.

He'd barely got started when Jofra Archer, unleashed in the format for the first time in 18 injury-plagued months, beat his outside edge with a snorting cutter that left him wide-eyed in astonishment. Three overs later, the compliment was returned in astonishing fashion, as Head whipped a preposterous flicked pull for six over midwicket. This time Archer's face was a picture of incredulity.

Matthew Potts had struck in his second over to remove Mitchell Marsh, and three balls later he should have landed the big fish. Head had made just 6 from eight balls when he lashed into an uppercut and Brydon Carse leapt with a reverse-cupped hand at deep point, reminiscent of Ben Stokes' wonder catch to launch the 2019 World Cup. Then as now, it would have been a simple take had he been set back on the ropes in the first place. The chance went begging and so did England's hopes.

36 Number of balls left unused in Australia's chase, which raises the question of whether Head could have had a shot at a double-century had he been able to keep on swinging.

110 Number of Head's runs that came from boundaries.

"It was difficult at the start. Jof's way too good for me… so I just tried to back my technique and tried to stay out there."
- Travis Head

"Sometimes 'width' is even middle-and-off stump for him, because he creates that room so well."
- Marcus Trescothick, England's white-ball coach

Pathum Nissanka
210 not out vs Afghanistan, first ODI, Pallekele
Jayasuriya, Sangakkara, Jayawardene, de Silva… Sri Lanka's proud lineage has been pumped full of magnificent batters, but Nissanka went where none of his countrymen had been before, making his country's first ODI double-century. With 20 fours and eight sixes, Nissanka pounded 210 not out from 139 balls to hoist his team to a daunting 381 for 3. What might have been with a better start for Afghanistan, however. After collapsing to 55 for 5, they ran their hosts pretty close thanks to feisty hundreds from Azmatullah Omarzai and Mohammad Nabi.