Head and Starc Destroy England in Two-Day Ashes Opener
Hamidur Rahim Mahir 
Australia have grabbed a 1–0 lead in the Ashes after crushing England by eight wickets in a wildly one-sided first Test in Perth. The match finished inside two days, with Travis Head’s blazing century and Mitchell Starc’s 10-wicket haul deciding a contest dominated almost entirely by pace bowling.
Australia seize Ashes lead with eight-wicket win
Set 205 for victory on day two, Australia stormed to the target with eight wickets in hand and plenty of time remaining. Head, promoted to open in place of the injured Usman Khawaja, smashed 123 from only 83 balls to break England’s resistance.
Marnus Labuschagne added an unbeaten half-century, guiding the hosts home after Head finally holed out with just 13 runs required. As a result, Australia take firm control of the five-match series before the teams move east.
Head century as makeshift opener changes the game
Head’s innings was the one standout batting performance in a Test otherwise ruled by the quicks. Coming in as a makeshift opener, he counterattacked England’s pace barrage with a flurry of hooks, pulls and back-foot drives, racing to fifty from 36 balls and a hundred from only 69 deliveries.
England tried short balls, fuller lines and changes of pace, but Head kept finding gaps and clearing the in-field. His tempo meant the chase, which looked tricky on a seaming pitch, turned into a sprint that left England “shell-shocked”, according to captain Ben Stokes.
Starc’s 10-wicket haul exposes fragile England batting
If Head finished the job, Starc had already wrecked England’s batting. The left-armer took 7–58 on day one as England crashed to 172 all out, then added 3–55 in the second innings to complete figures of 10–113 for the match.
Scott Boland provided relentless support, claiming 4–33 in England’s second-innings 164 and repeatedly beating the bat with nagging seam movement. England’s only real resistance came from middle-order runs by Harry Brook and Brydon Carse, but neither could turn starts into a defining score.
England’s attacking approach backfires on lively surface
England stuck to their aggressive “Bazball” approach, attacking with bat and ball on a fast, bouncy surface. However, their batting collapses on both days suggested the risk-reward balance was badly off in Perth’s conditions.
The tourists’ quicks—Stokes, Jofra Archer, Brydon Carse and Gus Atkinson—did rattle Australia, reducing them to 123-9 in the first innings and securing a 40-run lead. Yet they could not repeat that discipline once Head began counter-punching in the chase.
Early pressure on Stokes as series shifts to Adelaide
This defeat heaps early pressure on Stokes and coach Brendon McCullum, who had hoped to cash in after edging a chaotic first day. Questions will focus on England’s batting technique against the moving ball and the decision to go without a frontline spinner.
Australia, meanwhile, will take confidence not only from Head’s century and Starc’s haul but also from the way their attack hunted as a unit. If Perth is a guide, England must quickly find answers or risk the series slipping away just as fast as the opening Test.
Featured image: Getty Images
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