Australia

Brook batted with great maturity as he made a steely 75, taking a decisive chunk out of the 251-run target and set a fire under this summer’s rivalry, leaving Australia 2-1 ahead with two to play.

The Yorkshireman fell with 21 still needed as the third Test descended into nerve-shredding tension, but Mark Wood cut through the anxiety with a feisty 16 not out and Chris Woakes completed a remarkable return to the Test arena by crunching the winning runs towards the delirious Western Terrace to finish unbeaten on 32.

England’s three-wicket win was achieved despite Ben Stokes’ dismissal for just 13, a soft nick down the leg-side robbing the hosts of their inspirational captain and the architect of their 2019 Ashes miracle at the start of the decisive final session.

But in Brook they had a new hero, ready to carry the burden all the way to final furlong before passing it over to Woakes and Wood – making an emphatic first impression on their belated introductions to the series.

Leg-spinner Hayden Walsh Jr has been named in the match-day squad while all-rounder Fabian Allen returns from an injury sustained in the recent series against South Africa. All-rounder Jason Holder is being rested for this series as part of his workload management, and he is expected to feature in upcoming One-Day Internationals and Test matches.

Roger Harper, Lead Selector said: “Hayden Walsh Jr adds variety and another wicket-taking option, while Fabian Allen, who was unavailable for the last game because of injury, returns. Considering the opposition, it is important that the team plays well in all departments, especially the batting, which needs to deliver more consistently.”

This CG Insurance T20I Series forms part of the West Indies’ World Cup preparation with a total of 15 T20Is to be played across three months in the build-up to the ICC T20 World Cup to be played from October 17 to November 14 in the United Arab Emirates and Oman.

Fans in the Caribbean can watch exclusively live on Flow Sports or via the Flow Sports app. West Indies fans can also follow live ball-by-ball scoring in the www.windiescricket.com live match centre, featuring the new live match blog. Live radio commentary is available on a number of radio stations across the Caribbean and available worldwide, except in India and Bangladesh, on the Windies Cricket YouTube channel.

Fans in Australia can follow this match and the entire West Indies vs Australia CG Insurance T20I and ODI Series live on Foxtel’s Fox Cricket channel as well as via live stream on Kayo Sports.

Fully vaccinated patrons will be able to buy tickets for the series from the stadium ticket office at the East Gate on presentation of their vaccination documentation and their national ID, with tickets available at EC$50 per match. A three-match ticket promotion is available for just EC$120, with a special Series five-match season ticket special at EC$200.

FULL SQUAD: Kieron Pollard (Captain), Nicholas Pooran (Vice-Captain), Fabian Allen, Dwayne Bravo, Sheldon Cottrell, Fidel Edwards, Andre Fletcher, Chris Gayle, Shimron Hetmyer, Evin Lewis, Obed McCoy, Andre Russell, Lendl Simmons, and Hayden Walsh Jr.

Travelling Reserves: Akeal Hosein, Kevin Sinclair, and Oshane Thomas.

With Australia having already wrapped up a series victory following an impressive rout at the MCG, Pat Cummins' side head to Sydney in search of a clean sweep.

Injuries to Cameron Green and Mitchell Starc have seen Ashton Agar and Matt Renshaw handed red-ball recalls for the match, while Scott Boland has impressed through the series, but Hazlewood will hope he can rediscover his form after returning from injury.

Having missed the majority of a home Ashes series just over a year ago, Hazlewood played only two Tests in 2022, though the paceman believes he still has a valuable position in the pecking order.

"I still feel like it's in place," Hazlewood told reporters. "It's always good to have pressure It's great to have options, and it keeps you on your toes.

"[Injuries have been] frustrating, definitely. I don't feel like I've been injured much. It just happens to be at the wrong time of the year.

"The Test matches are so close together now. Apart from that, [for] the rest of the 24 months I've been fit and firing. So it's frustrating when you think about it like that."

Green and Starc's absence will possibly open the door for Hazlewood to feature, though he will face increased competition again when the two return.

But the focus will be on ensuring a whitewash against the Proteas at the SCG, where Australia have lost just one of their last 21 Tests.

Australia have won their last three men’s Tests against South Africa at home, the last and only time they recorded a longer winning run against the Proteas in such fixtures was an eight-match span from February 1911 to December 1952.

South Africa meanwhile risk losing a fifth straight Test, matching the rough run they endured between February and October 2019.

Khawaja heads to happy hunting ground

While his team-mates have been racking up big scores against the Proteas, Usman Khawaja has struggled for form across the series, with a total of 14 runs over three innings.

But he heads to a venue with rich pickings. Just 33 runs away from 4,000 in international red-ball cricket, his Test average at the SCG of 98.3 is the third-best of any player at the stadium, behind Wally Hammond and Sachin Tendulkar.

Nortje out to frustrate foes again

It has been a humbling experience for South Africa with bat and ball, but Anrich Nortje will hope at least to continue being a thorn in the side of opposition orders in 2023.

Batters played and missed at 19 per cent of balls he bowled in Tests in 2022, the highest rate of any player.

Siraj conceded 37 runs off just three overs in India's 10-wicket loss to Australia on Sunday, which caused the paceman to slump behind Hazlewood and New Zealand's Trent Boult.

Mitchell Stark took 5-53 in that rout, equalling the record number of five-wicket ODI hauls by an Australian bowler.

Hazlewood's rise to the top of the rankings comes despite the 32-year-old having not played in an ODI since November, while his last appearance in any format came in January.

However, he is expected to be back playing for this year's Ashes series in England, which commences on June 16 at Edgbaston.

Meanwhile, Kane Williamson has moved up four spots to second in the Test batting rankings behind Marnus Labuschagne. 

Williamson scored a remarkable 215 runs in New Zealand's victory over Sri Lanka in their two-match series, which the Black Caps won 2-0.

Hazlewood has missed the first two Tests – both defeats – with an Achilles problem.

And Australia have now accepted their fast bowler will not recover before the end of the series, making him the latest player to depart the tour.

Captain Pat Cummins was already confirmed to be travelling back to Australia due to a family issue, although he is expected back before the third Test.

After two big losses, Australia will at least have Cameron Green and Mitchell Starc available for the Indore Test.

Green had been absent with a finger injury, while Starc was dealing with a similar issue, albeit coach Andrew McDonald said he could have played in Delhi.

Cricket Australia on Monday confirmed a 14-man squad for the series opener at the Gabba following Sunday's 419-run rout of the West Indies in Adelaide.

Cummins has been named in that squad despite missing the Adelaide pink ball Test with a quad injury, but Hazlewood is absent again with an ongoing side strain issue.

The return of the Australian skipper would mean one of Scott Boland or Michael Neser would likely miss out in Brisbane against the Proteas. Uncapped WA tearaway Lance Morris retains his place in the squad but appears unlikely to break into the XI.

"Pat continues to improve, bowled with freedom on Saturday and appears likely to play this match, although Josh will need more time," selection chief George Bailey said. "With that in mind we have retained Michael Neser and Lance Morris in the squad for this match.

"Michael bowled superbly in Adelaide, as did Scott. We were impressed as always with their performances that backed up what they have achieved in the past. Lance is a very exciting prospect who will benefit from time with the squad.

"With so much cricket ahead, we continue to seek opportunities to grow and maintain our fast-bowling experience and depth."

Neser took five wickets for the match in the second Test against the West Indies, while Boland only managed three, but the latter's trio came in one devastating over in the second innings.

The Australia paceman delivered some magic to run out Vihari for four in Sydney.

Hazlewood scrambled to his right at mid-off before quickly unleashing a throw while diving, the direct hit catching Vihari well short of his ground at the SCG.

That left India at 142-4 in response to Australia's first-innings 338.

Hazlewood joins skipper Pat Cummins (quad) in missing the second Test after helping Australia to a comprehensive 164-run victory in the first Test in Perth.

Australia's stand-in skipper Steve Smith won the toss and elected to bat on Thursday for the day-night Test at Adelaide Oval which rounds out the two-game Test series, before taking on South Africa in a three-game Test series starting on Saturday 17 December.

Neser comes into the Australia side for his second Test appearance, with his only previous game coming at the same venue 12 months ago in similar circumstances with both Cummins and Hazlewood dropping out.

Uncapped tearaway Lance Morris, who was added to the Australia Test squad along with Neser earlier this week, misses out on the final XI.

"Unfortunately, Hazlewood was pulled out last night. I'm not entirely sure of his availability for South Africa," Smith said at the coin toss. "But Neser bowled really well last year so we're thrilled to have him back."

Australia had previously indicated they were optimistic Cummins would be available for the first Test against the Proteas.

The West Indies made three changes to their side, with Kemar Roach, Jayden Seales and Kyle Mayers out through injury, replaced by Anderson Phillip and debutants Marquino Mindley and Devon Thomas.

Boland has been in fine form since coming into Australia's Test team, taking 25 wickets in five appearances in the format at an average of 10.36.

The 33-year-old fast-medium pacer took 4-42 in Australia's six-wicket defeat of South Africa in Brisbane in the opening match of the series, but might well have lost his place to Hazlewood in Melbourne.

But Hazlewood, who has been recovering from a side strain, elected to withdraw from contention as he felt "underdone", earning the praise of captain Pat Cummins.

"We gave Joshy every chance,, it just got to a stage where he more than anyone else felt like he was a little bit underdone," Cummins said.

"It's a mark of the man really, he himself said 'don't feel quite right' so he kind of pulled himself out of selection.

"We talk a lot about how as a team we need a squad mentality and I think it's another great example."

Hazlewood trained well before the match at the Melbourne Cricket Ground, but Cummins explained a decision between the veteran campaigner and Boland did not have to be made in the end.

"We didn't really get to the decision point, we gave it enough time and it played out," Cummins said.

"There would have been a part of everyone that would've felt a little bit aggrieved if Scott missed out."

Australia opener David Warner, meanwhile, is set to hit the landmark of 100 Tests after keeping his place at the top of the order.

South Africa captain Dean Elgar did not reveal his starting XI, as he urged his batters to step up as the Proteas aim to keep their chances in the series alive.

But he conceded their batters must improve with the series on the line.

"We've always been in a good space since we've been in Australia," Elgar told reporters.

"We've just been through a bit of a hurdle in the last week – but I think both batting units have been through that.

"We've started afresh and we know runs on the board is key.

"We've had a few good conversations but at the moment talk is cheap. Your best reference point is putting performances on the board."

Australia XI to face South Africa: David Warner, Usman Khawaja, Marnus Labuschagne, Steve Smith, Travis Head, Cameron Green, Alex Carey (wk), Pat Cummins (c), Mitchell Starc, Nathan Lyon, Scott Boland

Australia appeared on track to clean up India's batting line-up and maintain a healthy lead on day three of the final match after leaving the tourists in a perilous position of 186-6, but unheralded pair Shardul (67) and Sundar (62) put on a remarkable 123-run stand.

Josh Hazlewood's five-wicket haul finally helped put an end to India's stubborn resistance – Australia heading into their second innings with a 33-run advantage on Sunday.

David Warner (20 not out) and Marcus Harris (1 not out) saw out the remaining half-hour of play to lead Australia to 21-0 at stumps, a lead of 54 runs, as Tim Paine's side face a race against time to win the Test and reclaim the Border-Gavaskar trophy.

After rain wreaked havoc on Saturday, India resumed 62-2 in response to Australia's first-innings 369 in Brisbane, where Hazlewood (5-57) and Mitchell Starc (2-88) managed to claim the prized scalps of Cheteshwar Pujara (25) and captain Ajinkya Rahane (37) in the morning session.

Hazlewood removed Mayank Agarwal (38) with the second delivery after lunch, and the Australia star almost dismissed Rishabh Pant (23) to leave India 186-6.

But Shardul and Sundar combined to sensationally thwart Australia, who toiled tirelessly before eventually bowling out India.

Star Australia opener Warner then raced out the blocks with a quick-fire 20 runs, including three boundaries, to navigate a tricky end to the day.

India duo come to the rescue

A remarkable seventh-wicket stand kept Australia at bay and clawed India within touching distance of the hosts' first-innings total.

It was an unlikely pairing that rescued India – Sundar celebrating a half-century on his Test debut, while Shardul also raised his bat for a maiden Test fifty.

Hazlewood huffs and puffs

For the second time in the blockbuster series, Hazlewood recorded a five-for against India.

It was far from easy for Australia, but Hazlewood battled as Pujara, Agarwal, Pant, Navdeep Saini (5) and Mohammed Siraj (13) fell victim to the fast bowler.

Leicestershire leg-spinner Ahmed has been called up to the England squad after the thrilling curtain-raiser at Edgbaston, which saw Australia win by two wickets to move 1-0 up in the series.

Teenager Ahmed, the youngest man to play Test cricket for England after his December appearance in Pakistan, was drafted into the set-up owing to concerns over Moeen Ali’s injured finger.

Moeen reversed his decision to retire from red-ball cricket to feature in the series opener – after Jack Leach was ruled out of the Ashes with a stress fracture – but a burst blister on his right index finger troubled the off-spinner in Birmingham.

The wound is being monitored by England’s medical staff ahead of Wednesday’s start and while there is optimism Moeen will be passed fit, Leicestershire’s director of cricket Claude Henderson knows the county’s talented prospect will be ready if called upon.

Henderson told the PA news agency: “Rehan is one of those characters: the bigger the game, the more he wants to stand up.

“He loves the big stage so let’s see what happens. I don’t know what the situation is like with him yet regarding the next Test but he joined them today and let’s see where that goes.

“He loves a challenge. He doesn’t play names, he plays the ball. He loves cricket and just wants to compete against the best players in the world, which is a great attitude to have.”

If Moeen does not recover in time, England could still leave Ahmed out of their XI and go with an all-seam attack at Lord’s supplemented by Joe Root’s off breaks.

Ahmed is not short of match practice though, having featured in seven of Leicestershire’s red-ball fixtures in Division Two.

Four half-centuries have followed and the 18-year-old reserved his best display for Headingley, home of the third Ashes Test, where he claimed three for 89 and smashed 85 in a memorable three-wicket win for his county.

“He has played a massive role for us in the County Championship. He came in at number seven, got good runs, got a 90 (against Glamorgan) and got a hundred at the back end of last year, so he is a really promising batter,” Henderson added.

“His bowling has shown a lot of good signs as well. April and May can be tricky in county cricket for leg spin but he stuck at it, has shown progress and is just a wonderful character to have in the changing room.

“It is important from us on Rehan’s development to keep getting him overs, which is great. We’ll keep doing that to try and create opportunities for him to develop as the final cricketer.”

Six wickets at an average of 67.66 and an economy rate of 4.01 in Division Two this season may not strike fear into the Australians, but Ahmed showed on his Test debut with five for 48 in Karachi the difficulty of picking up his leg breaks.

At the age of 11, Ahmed had bowled to future captain Ben Stokes in the nets and two years later left the late Shane Warne in awe of his wrist spin.

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England’s decision to again go bold and call up the teenager to cover Moeen over more experienced options suggests even if there is no Ashes debut at Lord’s, Ahmed could break Brian Close’s record as England’s youngest player in the men’s Ashes later this summer.

And if not, Henderson feels the all-rounder can continue to aid Leicestershire’s promotion charge.

He said: “Look, let’s see what happens. We never know with Lord’s, Lord’s can spin.

“It depends on the weather and what they want to do but he just offers so much in the changing room, with the bat and he is the whole package.

“We’ll see what England say. I know they do send back some players when they are not playing, they ask them to go back and play county cricket.

“I think it would be healthy for Rehan to keep playing cricket, not sit on the bench but there are always opportunities and it is just great for us to see him back in the mix with England.”

The openers forged an alliance of 269 runs as Australia posted 355-5 in a rain-interrupted match in Melbourne, with England only able to muster 142 all out in reply, suffering a third emphatic defeat.

Australia's innings was trimmed to 48 overs, which meant under the Duckworth–Lewis–Stern calculations England's target was set at 364 for victory, which they got nowhere near. Nine days after winning the T20 World Cup on the same ground, England's response to Australia's total was largely listless.

Head made an ODI career-best 152, while Warner was out for 106, his 19th century in this format. They put on the ninth-highest first-wicket stand in ODI history, second only for Australia to the 284 that Head and Warner themselves amassed in January 2017 against Pakistan.

It was their second 200-plus partnership, and only Sri Lanka's Mahela Jayawardene and Upul Tharanga, who have managed three, have achieved more as a pairing in ODIs.

Olly Stone eventually removed both openers in the same over, the 39th of Australia's innings, on the way to bowling figures of 4-85 from 10 overs.

England's opening partnership, in stark contrast, was worth only 15 runs, with Dawid Malan falling for just two to Josh Hazlewood in the third over. Jason Roy top scored with 33, as Adam Zampa took 4-31 in the rout.

Warner beats Hayden record

Warner now has 6,007 runs from 139 ODI innings, becoming the 10th Australian batter to reach 6,000 runs in the format. He has reached the milestone in the fewest innings of all Australians, beating Matthew Hayden's previous record of 154 innings.

Head rush

Head's 152 goes down as the second-highest score by an Australian player in the history of men's ODIs against England, bettered only by Shane Watson's unbeaten 161 in January 2011. The thrashing gave Australia's men just their second whitewash of England in a multi-game bilateral ODI series, 29 years after the first, also a 3-0 victory.

The hosts collapsed at the end of their innings, and Head's sensational tally ensured it did not take long for Australia to reach their target, with 36 balls to spare.

Phil Salt (17) may have walked early, but England started well overall, with fellow opener Ben Duckett (95) and Will Jacks (62) pushing them forward.

However, Marnus Labuschagne (3-39) removed Duckett and then Harry Brook, captaining England for the first time, as their slide began.

Jacob Bethell took them over 300 with his 35, but Adam Zampa also took three wickets in his 100th ODI (3-49) as England finished all out for 315.

Head had a nervous moment with just six runs to his name as Brydon Carse dropped what would have been a spectacular one-handed catch, but he did not look back after that.

His knock included 20 fours and five sixes as he brought up his sixth ODI century, and with the help of Labushagne (77), he got the tourists over the line with ease.

Australia have a 1-0 lead in the series, with the next match taking place at Headingley on Saturday. 

Data Debrief: England fail to end Australia dominance

England had put themselves in a great position to end Australia's 13-match winning streak in ODIs, but ultimately struggled to defend their target.

That was mainly down to Head's superb performance. Ricky Ponting was the player with the highest score for Australia in ODIs at Trent Bridge with 126 before his impressive knock.

It was also the tourists' highest successful ODI chase in England.

Head produced a knock of 140 off 141 balls at the Adelaide Oval, where the hosts finished the day with a 29-run lead.

Australia resumed at 86-1, and Marnus Labuschagne laid the foundations for their charge in response to India's 180 with a contribution of 64.

Head then took centre stage to take the hosts to 337, with Mohammed Siraj (4-98) and Jasprit Bumrah (4-61) preventing the tourists' deficit from being greater. 

Australia's bowlers then came to the fore. Skipper Pat Cummins dismissed KL Rahul (seven), while Scott Boland claimed Yashasvi Jaiswal (24) and Virat Kohli (11).

Mitchell Starc, fresh from his career-best Test figures of 6-48 on day one, then took Shubman Gill (28), before Cummins removed Rohit Sharma (six) to leave India at 128-5 at stumps.

Data Debrief: Head shines on home soil

Adelaide-born Head notched his third century in just nine Test innings at the Oval.

Though fortunate to be dropped by Siraj on 76, he capitalised on the let-off to reach the ton off 111 deliveries.

Head certainly enjoys playing India, too, with exactly half of his six centuries across all formats in 2023 coming against them (three).

He has also averaged 61.9 in 19 innings against India during that time, compared to 36.8 against all other opponents.

It was between Head and Khawaja in the race to bat at number five in Wednesday's opener in Brisbane and Australia stuck with the former.

Head, who played in four of the 2019 Ashes Tests and top-scored with 51 at an average of 27.28 before sitting out the final match, has made 394 runs – including two centuries – at 49.25 this Sheffield Shield season.

His overall Test record also stands at an average of 39.75 from 19 matches, including two tons.

Khawaja – without an international appearance in the longest format of cricket since the third Ashes Test in 2019 – also had a pair of hundreds as part of a 460-run haul at 65.71 in the Sheffield Shield.

But new Australia skipper Cummins and selectors preferred Head as they bid to retain the urn, though England are yet to confirm their XI.

"It was a tight one. Both really good options, really strong form," said Cummins on Sunday.

"Experience is great from Uzzie and we feel really lucky to have that in the squad, but Trav's been playing a lot for us the last couple of years.

"He's gone away and he's churned out runs in England, here in Australia, and we feel like he's really ready to go."

Australia quick Mitchell Starc avoided the axe, selectors keeping faith with the paceman alongside fellow pace bowlers Cummins and Josh Hazlewood.

Starc's position was under threat due to his form and the rise of Jhye Richardson, who had taken 15 wickets in his past two Sheffield Shield matches.

England captain Joe Root declined to announce his team during Sunday's series launch, telling reporters: "We've got all the options on the table [but] we're not going to name a team just yet.

"We'll have to see the closer forecase and how that pitch changes over the next couple of days.

"But it's a great place to play spin. It's something we'll weigh up and consider, but we're not in a position to make that call right now."

Australian XI: David Warner, Marcus Harris, Marnus Labuschagne, Steve Smith, Travis Head, Cameron Green, Alex Carey, Pat Cummins (c), Nathan Lyon, Josh Hazlewood, Mitchell Starc.

England: Joe Root (c), James Anderson, Jonathan Bairstow, Dom Bess, Stuart Broad, Rory Burns, Jos Buttler, Zak Crawley, Haseeb Hameed, Dan Lawrence, Jack Leach, Dawid Malan, Craig Overton, Ollie Pope, Ollie Robinson, Ben Stokes, Chris Woakes, Mark Wood.

England had salvaged some pride during Australia's late collapse, only to fumble their chance with the bat as they failed to reach their target of 180.

Australia got off to a flying start, with Head hitting 59 off 23 balls, including 30 off Sam Curran in a single over with three fours and three sixes.

Liam Livingstone helped to slow the tide with 3-22, including taking opener Matt Short (41), before the tourists collapsed, losing their last five wickets for 14 runs, with Jofra Archer taking two in two (2-31), to finish 179 all out.

The hosts just could not get going though, as Phil Salt was caught for 20 before Curran (18) and Livingstone (37) both departed in the space of four deliveries to stunt any England progress.

Jordan Cox (17), one of three debutants, had already been dismissed, thanks to Tim David's stunning catch at full stretch, before the lower order slumped to 151 in the final over. 

The second T20I takes place on Friday in Cardiff, where England will attempt to force a decider for the final contest on Sunday.

Data Debrief: Unhappy homecoming

Australia have won back-to-back T20Is against England for the first time since February 2018, but the hosts would have expected much better when they saw the target set for them.

Instead, they failed to win a third consecutive T20 match at The Rose Bowl, their longest outright losing streak at the venue in the history of the format.

Dean Elgar's team were torn apart by Australia's bowling attack on day one as the Proteas were dismissed inside 50 overs for just 152.

The hosts also wobbled initially on a fast pitch, but Head and Steve Smith (36) steadied the ship from 27-3, though a couple of late wickets gave South Africa some hope of getting back into the game.

A tentative start from the tourists saw them reduced to 27-4, and things could have been significantly worse had it not been for a partnership of 98 between Temba Bavuma and Kyle Verreyne, before the former was bowled by Mitchell Starc for 38.

That began another batting collapse, with Verreyne eventually falling to Nathan Lyon for 62 as the tail failed to wag.

South Africa struck immediately in reply though as David Warner struggled with a short delivery from Kagiso Rabada off the first ball of the Australian first innings and was caught well by Khaya Zondo for a golden duck.

Marnus Labuschagne (11) edged Marco Jansen's first ball into the hands of Elgar before Usman Khawaja (11) also nudged an Anrich Nortje delivery to sub Simon Harmer in the slips.

After a reprieve when a review showed an edge had dropped just short of Elgar, Head took full advantage as he brought up his half-century off just 48 balls.

A partnership of 117 with Smith was ended by Nortje before the close as he sent a terrific delivery into Smith's stumps, before Rabada dismissed nightwatchman Scott Boland (1) off the last ball of the day, though Head remained unbeaten on 78 from just 77 balls as Australia closed on 145-5.

Balanced Aussie bowling downs Proteas

The key to a potent bowling attack – especially in Test cricket – is teamwork and variation, and Australia have that in spades.

South Africa's was an innings of two halves, with Starc (3-41), Pat Cummins (2-35) and Boland (2-28) all picking up early wickets, before the consistent spin of Lyon mopped things up, with the 35-year-old ending with figures of 3-14.

Head leads the way

It has been a very interesting innings from Head, looking nervous after scoring just two from his first 16 deliveries, before deciding to just go for it and smashing 51 from his next 32.

He even brought up his 50 with a six down the leg side, making a mockery of the struggles experienced by almost every other batsman on day one, ending with 14 boundaries (13 fours) to his name by the close.

Having been put in to bat by visiting skipper Mitchell Marsh, Scotland set Australia a target of 155 for victory, with opener George Munsey top scoring with 28 runs.

Sean Abbott finished with figures of 3-39 while Xavier Barlett and Adam Zampa managed two wickets apiece for Australia, who needed just 10 overs to get over the line.

Head hit 12 fours – as many as the entire Scotland team combined – and five sixes to ensure the visitors avoided any real pressure despite debutant Jake Fraser-McGurk being caught for a duck by Charlie Cassell early on.

Head's wicket was one of two scalped by Mark Watt in the seventh over but Australia were well on their way to victory by that point, with Josh Inglis (27) and Marcus Stoinis (8) finishing things off in composed fashion.

The second T20I takes place on Friday, with Scotland attempting to force a decider for the final contest the following day.

Data Debrief: Travis head and shoulders above the rest

Head's superb knock was the key for Australia, who needed less than half their allocated balls to bring up their target of 155, but he may be frustrated at missing out on a first T20I century.

His best figure in the format remains a knock of 91 in a victory over South Africa in Durban last year.

Healy registered the highest score – by a man or woman – in a World Cup final in a superb 138-ball knock, becoming the first player to score a century in both the semi-final and final at the same World Cup.

The wicketkeeper-batter's scintillating outing also ensured she set a record for the most runs scored by a woman in the tournament, taking her tally to an astonishing 509 in Christchurch, as Australia defeated England by 71 runs on Sunday.

But the 32-year-old opener does not think she can be labelled as a player for the big occasions despite her heroics.

"Not sure I'll let you name it. I'll let you find it," Healy told reporters after the final. "But, 'brave'? I just think you've got to be brave to come out in situations like that to be able to play your game.

"You know that the opposition are going to come really hard at you. They want to take your wicket early and you have got to be brave and back your skills.

"So, personally, I'm really proud of that. I still don't think I'm a big-game player. So, turn that down, but you have just got to be brave to be able to do it."

Healy became the first player – man or woman – to hit 150 or more in the final of a world tournament, and she acknowledged that the victory means even more after failing to make the World Cup final in 2017.

"I don't think I've ever dreamt of anything like that before, I can guarantee you that," she added.

"But I'm just really proud to have been able to contribute to this win. I messaged Pez [Ellyse Perry] this morning when I found out she was in the XI and I said, like, 'I just want to be a part of it. I really want this. I want to contribute to this win and to be able to do that was really special.

"I ran drinks the whole 2013 World Cup. You know we didn't make the final in 2017. So, for me, this trophy means a lot and to be able to turn up at the back end and go all right in the last two games means a whole heap."

The records continued to tumble for Healy, whose 170 also surpassed Adam Gilchrist's 149 in 2007 as the highest score in a World Cup final by an Australian wicketkeeper-batter, but she remains uninterested in those achievements.

"That's pretty cool, [but] I'm not in the game for that sort of stuff. Getting our team into a winning position was the most important thing," she responded on Gilchrist's record.

"I guess one day when I retire and I reflect on my career, it's a moment that I can kind of remember and cherish that. I always looked up to Adam Gilchrist; Uncle Ian [Healy] first, but then Adam Gilchrist, so to knock him off the pedestal - sorry about that - but I'm sure he'll appreciate it."

Persistent downpours in Sydney mean Australia captain Pat Cummins faces a dilemma on when to declare with his side in complete control at 475-4 with Usman Khawaja (195*) and Matthew Renshaw (5*) at the crease.

Time is running out for Australia to complete a clean sweep of the three-game Test series, after 57 overs were lost on the opening two days before Friday's complete washout.

The Sydney forecast is for improved weather on the remaining two days, with a shower or two predicted for Saturday, followed by partly cloudy conditions without any rain on Sunday.

There are 196 overs remaining in the Test, meaning Cummins will need to be decisive, but likely will allow Khawaja to reach a maiden double hundred.

Australia will be motivated to secure the victory clinch their first-ever spot in the ICC World Test Championship final to be played in June.

The Aussies are due to travel to India for a four-game Test series starting in February.

Sydney's rain curse persists

Sydney's poor run of rain impacting Tests in January continues, with a total of 25 days washed out due to rain in 110 Test matches at the SCG. Over the past eight years, 64 per cent of days during the SCG Tests have been impacted by rain.

Elsewhere, Perth has never had an entire day's play washed out, while Hobart (one) and Adelaide (two) have had minimal issues, while Brisbane and Melbourne have lost eight and nine full days respectively.