When Travis Head went unsold at IPL 2023 auction

Australian top-order batter Travis Head has been a massive hit in IPL 2024, setting the tone for the SunRisers Hyderabad on more occasions than one. Given the southpaw's performance in the ongoing edition, it is stunning to discover that he received no bids in the IPL 2023 auction.

Head entered the 2023 auction at ₹2 crore, but didn't find any bids, supposedly due to his previous inconsistent stint with the Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) in 2016 and 2017. The left-hander managed only 37 runs in three matches in 2016, followed by decent returns of 151 in seven appearances the following season. The South Australian didn't make an appearance after that until the 2024 edition.

The demand for Head increased following his spectacular showing at the 2023 ODI World Cup in India. He started the showpiece event with a hundred against New Zealand in Dharamsala but played the innings of his life in the final as Australia locked horns with the Men in Blue in Ahmedabad. The 30-year-old's 137 hauled Australia to their sixth World Cup title.

Following, the SunRisers Hyderabad secured Travis Head's services for ₹6.8 crore in the IPL 2024 mini auction last year.

---

Travis Head lights up IPL 2024 with a 39-ball 100 against RCB

Travis Head. (Image Credits: Twitter)

The South Australian's first appearance for the SunRisers saw him blast a quickfire 62 against the Mumbai Indians, setting the tone for the then-highest total of 277. He returned with modest scores in the next three innings but hit his straps against the Royal Challengers at the Chinnaswamy Stadium.

The southpaw brought up his half-century against RCB off only 20 deliveries in the sixth over. He converted it into a 39-ball ton, which also proved to be the fourth fastest in IPL history. It came in the 12th over as he clipped a boundary off wide long-on. Head's innings ended at 102 off 40 balls after Lockie Ferguson got the better of him.

The likes of Heinrich Klaasen, Aiden Markram, and Abdul Samad played their parts to significant effect as the Orange Army blasted the highest total in IPL history with 287 runs in 20 overs.