Australia's Travis Head celebrates after he dismissed Sri Lanka's Upul Tharanga during the fifth and final one day international (ODI) cricket match between Sri Lanka and Australia at The Pallekele International Cricket Stadium in Pallekele on September 4, 2016. / AFP / LAKRUWAN WANNIARACHCHI (Photo credit should read LAKRUWAN WANNIARACHCHI/AFP/Getty Images)
Travis Head has extended his 10-year stay at the Adelaide Strikers, signing on for another two seasons this week.
Head was one of nine centrally contracted players without a BBL deal (including David Warner, Steve Smith, Pat Cummins, Mitch Starc and Josh Hazlewood), but has become the first Australian multi-format star to sign ahead of this summer's Big Bash League (BBL).
The South Australian has played 53 BBL matches for the Strikers, scoring 1360 career runs (fourth all-time run-scorer at the club) at a superb strike rate of 132.68.
Strikers head coach Jason Gillespie said Head's leadership and experience will be vital, while Head reported feeling thrilled to sign on for another two years.
"I love representing Adelaide and South Australia at all levels and so I am thrilled to have another couple of years locked away with the Strikers," Head said in a club statement on Thursday.
"Playing cricket at Adelaide Oval is one of the great joys of this game and I look forward to seeing what we can do this season as we look to go to that next level.
"We have a really strong squad and so I’ll just be trying to play my role within that and doing all I can to contribute with both bat and ball."
Head has become a mainstay of Australia's middle order in home fixtures, which means he will likely be out of action at the start of the BBL - during Australia's Test series' against the West Indies and South Africa in December and January.
But South Africa have withdrawn from a scheduled three-match ODI series in January, opening the door for Head (and other Aussie stars) to return to the Strikers for their final six matches.
The Strikers will kick off their BBL campaign against the Sydney Sixers on December 14 at the Adelaide Oval.