Travis Head hits a boundary during the Australia v Scotland T20i

Australia, and Travis Head in particular, crushed Scotland in the first T20I, smashing 113 runs in the powerplay and winning with 62 balls to spare.

Head was the leader of the carnage, bludgeoning 73 off 22 in the first six overs, as Australia hunted down the 155-run target inside ten overs.

Mark Watt, who did not bowl in the powerplay, was the only one spared from the onslaught, finishing with 2-13 from two overs. Every other bowler, and there were six tried in all, went for over 12.5.

A record-breaking first six overs

The chase began on a sedate note, with just five runs off the first over – including the wicket of debutant Jake Fraser-McGurk, but things unravelled quickly. Head began with three fours off a Brad Wheal over, and followed it with a 20-run over off Brandon McMullen's next. Charlie Cassell's first over went for 19, before Mitchell Marsh joined the party too, clubbing Jack Jarvis for a 30-run over. 

Off the first ball of the sixth over, Head reached his fifty off only 17 balls. It's the joint-fastest by an Australian, level with Marcus Stoinis' Perth onslaught against Sri Lanka in 2022. 

By the end of the over, which went for another 26 runs, Australia had reached 113-1 – the highest six-over score in a T20I match. It's important to note that Romania chased down 116 for no loss in 5.4 overs against Serbia in a 2021 Sofia T20I game, technically still the record for the highest score inside a powerplay.

Head was eventually dismissed by Watt on 80 off 25 – a strike-rate of 320, 12 fours and five sixes included. Earlier in the over, Watt dismissed Marsh for a 12-ball 39.

Head: The powerplay crusher

Head's carnage is just another chapter in a dream T20 season: he was also part of Sunrisers Hyderabad's T20 record-breaking powerplay score of 125 in IPL 2024, ending with 89 off 32. He was also part of another 100-plus powerplay score later in the tournament, when SRH raced to 107 in the powerplay against Lucknow Supergiants. Head finished on 89* off 30.

Head's 73 was the highest score in a T20I powerplay by a batter, beating Paul Stirling's 67 for Ireland against the West Indies in 2020.

Australia won by 62 balls to spare, going 1-0 up in the three-T20I series.

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