The space on the tram trundling down King William St in Adelaide before play resumed in the Border Gavaskar Trophy on Saturday was as tight as Marnus Labuschagne had looked a night earlier as he scraped and scrambled through a sweaty night session.
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But the cramped confines did not stop the banter between fans excited about the adventure that lay ahead of them after the promising signs from Australia on the opening day, particularly with a South Aussie at the crease with two more including Travis Head to come.
What unfolded would have pleased almost everyone on that tram aside, perhaps, from a couple of out-of-towners who had arrived in Adelaide thinking they would be able to walk in on the day, only to be disappointed when a sell-out was declared at 11.16am.
“There were a couple of corporate tickets available for $950 bucks, but we’re not paying that,” one said to no-one in particular before disembarking at the Rundle St Mall.
Given the thrill-a-minute manner with which Head, in particular, but also Labuschagne batted on Saturday, that would have been value for money.
A young boy wearing a ‘Baggy Green’ that looked suspiciously authentic was a little weary, but that was only because he had stuck around in the heat and humidity, and through a couple of blackouts as well, the night prior to cheer his heroes including Labuschagne on.
The adopted local lad Nathan McSweeney was another topic of choice. Could the new opener go on with it? There was optimism from some fans, though it was understandably timid.
Jasprit Bumrah? He was bloody unplayable in Perth, an older bloke wearing an Aussie T-shirt said, while another chimed in that the Indian’s action was “out of this world”. And so, too, his form.
But the majority were looking forward to Head batting, with good reason.
The SA star had looked good in Perth in the second innings and there were a couple of mid-20s fellas hoping he would thrash and dash it to every boundary of Adelaide Oval as well.
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But there were also well wishes for Labuschagne.
After his failures in Perth, the words devoted to dissecting the woes that had beset the Queenslander could have filled the Nullarbor Plain from Eucla through to Ceduna.
But in the process of travelling from the abomination in Perth to the delights of Adelaide Oval, with a brief detour for the comforts of home, the 30-year-old managed to rediscover his form when reaching 64.
That will delight an older bloke who had managed to sneak in a round of golf in the morning before heading into the cricket. He said that no matter what happened on Saturday, he hated watching champions searching for their talent and also the ball.
Labuschagne looked shattered after he got out trying to be too cute, despite scoring just his second 50 in his last 19 knocks.
As he walked from the middle, he raised his bat to the generous applause from those standing in both the Sir Edwin Smith and Sir Donald Bradman Stands.
Whether his spot in the XI was in doubt for Brisbane is a matter of conjecture, for regardless of how the remainder of the Adelaide Test pans out, the right-hander will play at home next week.
But Head is the local hero and the marvel most had come to see.
The 30-year-old demonstrated exactly why when becoming the first South Australian batter to score three Test centuries on his home ground, all in succession, which took him past Ian Chappell.
“There are some great names there, but three (centuries) from nine (innings), that is fabulous,” former Indian coach Ravi Shastri said on Fox Cricket.
“That is why his nickname in India is not Travis Head. It is Travis ‘Headache’.”
Head smashed fours and sixes and flashed and scratched on occasion — he played and missed four of his first nine deliveries in a scratchy start and was dropped late in his innings by Mohammed Siraj a ball after putting Ashwin into the stands — but was always entertaining.
Among the sell-out crowd was his new baby boy Harrison, who was being nursed in the arms of his mum Jessica.
After nudging Ravindra Ashwin for a quickly run single to bring up his century, a stroke of rare tranquility among the fire and fury of his innings, Head celebrated with a “rocking the baby” motion.
As Head bathed in the sunlight about 15 metres from the crease, the crowd that had roared in approval when he set off for the single offered a standing ovation.
“This is your stage, Trav. Take it all in,” former English international Isa Guha said in commentary.
South Australians are a patriotic mob and love nothing better than a local star succeeding, as Australia’s former star bowler Brett Lee noted; “This crowd are absolutely loving it.”
Mark Waugh, who made batting look easier than most others when in his pomp, praised both the manner of the innings and also its importance in helping wrest the game Australia’s way.
“It was an absolutely fantastic innings. He has just turned this game on its head,” Fox Cricket analyst Mark Waugh said.
“In a couple of hours, he has got to 100 … off the back of what has been a magnificent 100. He was very, very aggressive. There was some magnificent stroke play.”
The blokes who baulked hours earlier at paying $950 for a couple of tickets had missed out. That could not be said for Head, who proceeded to up the ante further in the next over when smashing the hapless Harshit Rana for three fours.
Even at the end, when Head fell for 140, there was drama. Mohammed Siraj bowled him with a yorker, and then gave him a send-off.
Head responded with a look of disgust, an attitude shared by the partisan crowd, who proceeded to boo Siraj with vehemence after the hero had departed.
There will be much discussion on that. But it should not overshadow the celebration for Head, who raised his arms in triumph as he departed.
“What an epic hand it has been by the local. They are rising for him. As so they should. This has turned the Test match. The kid from Tee Tree Gully will walk off with a village (behind him),” Kerry O’Keeffe said.
This was a day to remember.
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