Even Travis Head would barely recognise the batter who walked out onto the MCG four years ago against India.

Out-of-form and under the gun, Head was dismissed edging twice, pushing at balls on 38 and 17 as Australia were flogged by eight wickets in the 2020 Boxing Day Test.

The left-hander was then squeezed out of the team to allow Will Pucovski to debut in Sydney, with questions over Head’s future in the red-ball game.

“I lost my (national) contract and then I went to Sussex and stunk it up there as well,” Head told AAP.

“I tried to keep batting the way I was batting and it wasn’t working. I was trying to still nurdle instead of just backing myself.

“Then in one of my last games at Sussex I got 49 off 46 in the second innings and I thought f**k this, I am just going to slog.

“And I did well, so I thought: ‘why don’t I just do that?’.”

The innings against Kent at Canterbury proved a turning point in Head’s career, with the heights he has achieved since being recalled in the 2021-22 Ashes well known.

It has reached the point that when Head lands in Melbourne on Sunday ahead of the first Boxing Day Test against India since 2020, he will arrive as close to Australia’s most important player.

In 33 Tests since his return to the Australian side, Head has been player-of-the match in eight of them.

In the same time period, no other Australian has received the award more than three times.

Head has averaged 46.71 through that period and hit nine centuries, most of them match-changing.

So valuable has he become, Australia’s game plan is now largely built around the 30-year-old, with the top order attempting to ensure he walks to the crease able to attack an older ball.

That was evident in Head’s 152 against India in the third Test at the Gabba last week, just as it was in the 170 he hit against them in Adelaide in back-to-back man-of-the-match performances in the second Test.

In his own mind, Head knows he is a long way removed from the batsman who walked off the MCG with his cards marked four years ago.

“I was worried about my technique back then,” Head said.

“My theory was if I could stay out there long enough my aggressive approach would take over, and I would score runs by being there.

“Now I am like, don’t worry about getting out, if you can score score. And then if you can’t score, get in good positions to not get out.

“I’m more worried about runs now than anything else.”

Head believes his more attacking mindset has turned him into a more consistent cricketer, while still going at a strike-rate of 80.56 in the years since that 2020-21 axing.

“I’m not going out thinking today is the day where I am going to score at a run a ball,” Head said.

“It’s whatever the game presents to me. Be it the first ball I face or last ball of the day, if the game presents runs, take runs.

“That has been my approach for the last few years. That has put me in better positions in terms of my defence, and the way I play and the way I move.

“And that brings more consistency. When I think I may get out, or I shouldn’t do this, is most times when I stuff it up.”