travis head And steve smith Scored a brilliant century on the third day 5th Ashes Test at Sydney Cricket GroundGuiding Australia to a dominant position. His flexibility and aggressive approach with the bat put England under serious pressure as the hosts took a good lead. Australia reached 518/7 by the end of play, leading England by 134 runs, giving them a firm grip on the game. England struggled to build on the lead that day as both Head and Smith held their own with determination, leaving the visitors with limited counter-attacking options. Australia’s lead in the third session, aided by these two centuries, put England in a position where they needed to pull together quickly to avoid an overmatch.
Travis Head’s unbeaten 163 and Steve Smith’s calm 129 provide stability as Australia dominate
Head’s blistering innings of 163 (166 balls, 24×4, 1×6) was a masterclass in attacking cricket. His innings included 24 fours and demonstrated his ability to accelerate the scoring when needed. Head came out with intent and quickly found his rhythm and dominated the bowlers with flair and composure. His aggressive but calculated approach meant he never panicked, even when the pressure mounted to take Australia’s innings forward. His partnership with Smith was vital, and together, they pushed Australia from a strong foundation to a strong position.
While Head provided the aggression, Smith’s 129 (205 balls, 15×4, 1×6) provided the right balance to Australia’s innings. Known for his meticulous technique and unwavering concentration, Smith faced 205 balls and hit 15 fours along with one six. There was patience in his innings and a keen sense of how to produce long, effective innings. While others around him lost their wickets, Smith stood firm and kept the scoreboard ticking. Smith’s calmness, coupled with his ability to rotate the strike and build partnerships, ensured that Australia continued to dictate the flow of the match.
Also read: Ashes 2025-26: Fans go wild as Steve Smith lights up SCG with 37th century in Test cricket
England’s bowling attack is struggling with pressure and inaccuracy
The England bowlers were largely ineffective in stemming the flow of runs despite their best efforts. The day belonged to Australia’s batsmen, but England’s attack had a lot to do in reply. ben stokesDespite his reputation as a match-winner, he struggled to find breakthroughs and ended the day with figures of 2/87 from 26 overs.
Similarly, braydon carseJoe had been effective in previous seasons, finishing with figures of 3/108 from 23 overs. He was the best performer for England so far in the series. passion tonguetook the important wicket of alex carey But otherwise failed to trouble the batsmen much. With the ball frequently hitting the hitting zone and limited seam movement, it became difficult for the England bowlers to apply sustained pressure. As a result, they were unable to take advantage of any moments of weakness, leaving Australia in the driver’s seat. With their bowling attack under pressure, England would need a major effort to stop Australia’s further progress in the match.
Here’s how fans reacted:
Steve Smith’s greatness in the red ball is not his centuries or his statistics, it is his ability to adapt to any way to score runs, his battle with himself to find a way to score runs in any situation is a joy to watch.🏏
– Shantanu Srivastava (@DaKingInDaNorff) 6 January 2026
Only Don Bradman has more centuries than Steve Smith’s 13 Ashes centuries, which seems fair. It is difficult to dispute Smith’s status as Australia’s best batsman since Bradman.
– Tim Wigmore (@timwig) 6 January 2026
The best batsman of this generation.#smear https://t.co/pnerz3Zqyj
– Cricblog ✍ (@cric_blog) 6 January 2026
A series-defining ton in the first Test, a series-sealing ton in the third Test and a series-champion ton in the fifth. All of them are in such a situation where they have never batted before on home ground. World’s best Test batsman or not, Travis Head is the world’s most influential Test batsman #ash pic.twitter.com/9ZSkqjLywJ
– Bharat Sundaresan (@beastieboy07) 5 January 2026
Travis Head in the middle 🗿
Travis Head as opener 🗿
Travis Head in Test, ODI, T20 🗿Head led Australia in the BGT last year and the Ashes this year. pic.twitter.com/4j4tonpNJW
– Dinda Academy (@academy_dinda) 6 January 2026
Travis Head is the only person to successfully play buzzball in this series. He is everything we hoped Ben Duckett would be when he starts this series. The worst part is that he seems like a nice guy.
– The Cricketmen (@thecricketmen) 5 January 2026
England have no full-time bowling or fielding coach
This is no serious management, as an opposition team you would expect Key, McCullum and Stokes to continue as a combo #ash
-Chatil Panditsekara (@ChatilPandi) 6 January 2026
The top 10 run-scorers and wicket-takers in this Ashes are all from England and Australia. This is called dominance 🔥
– Udit (@udit_buch) 6 January 2026
England wasted a review on Nightwatchman, and has only one left, with the entire third day in front of him.
– Lawrence Booth (@BoothCricket) 5 January 2026
Also read: Ricky Ponting names Australia’s 16-man squad for Ashes 2027; Two uncapped players selected
