On the ground where England have achieved two record scores on an international day in the past, a seven-wicket defeat to Australia was a reminder of the task ahead of them to recreate those halcyon days. Travis Head’s career-best 154-match unbeaten streak was a stunning onslaught and, overall, it was a serious stretch of muscle from the world champions given their struggles during preparation.

Australia were ostensibly weakened here, with Pat Cummins resting at home and Josh Hazlewood, Mitchell Starc and Glenn Maxwell all ruled out on the morning of the match because of the virus that had ravaged their camp. But after an inventive bowling performance that restricted England to a below-par 315, Head and Marnus Labuschagne, 77 not out, blasted the target under the floodlights with six overs to spare to secure a 1-0 lead in this five-match series.

That was a pretty sobering start as stand-in England captain for Harry Brook, who was one of three victims of Labuschagne’s part-time spinner and then had no answer to Head’s flashing blade during the run chase. One chance came and went – Brydon Carse, out of position in the deep, almost pulled off a remarkable diving catch when Head had six – but after that it was another masterpiece from the opener who sealed victory at the World Cup in Ahmedabad last November and continues to be in absolutely top form against the white ball.

“Head is a serious player,” said Marcus Trescothick, England’s interim coach before Brendon McCullum takes over in January. “Losing is never easy but we did some really good things, just not for long periods of time. The pitch was getting better so the coin toss was probably a big factor in what happened.”

Brook actually won that toss. However, much was riding on England’s innings and that chance was wasted. While Phil Salt was eliminated early, Ben Duckett (95) and Will Jacks (62) had built a platform from which the old England would probably have exploded. They had reached 168 for 1 in the 25th over and with left-hander Ben Dwarshuis leaving the field just four overs into his ODI debut, it looked like it would happen. Instead, captain Mitch Marsh conjured nine wickets from his spinners, of whom only Adam Zampa could claim to be truly top-class players.

Zampa, playing his 100th ODI, epitomised the turnaround. The leg-spinner’s first three overs brought him 27 and his last seven brought him three for 22. The catalyst, however, was the unlikely Labuschagne, who coaxed Duckett and Brook into returning catches with a couple of deep leg breaks in the middle overs and finished with a career-best three for 39 for six runs. Judging by the celebrations, his teammates will probably never hear that again.

Duckett’s departure was rather annoying, as the left-hander had seized his chance to finally start in an ODI with a typically mischievous innings that saw him score 120 for the second wicket. Jacks was his wingman here, enjoying the absurdly short boundary that has made Trent Bridge a dream pitch for England in the past. But after the No. 3 failed to gain sufficient height while attempting to beat Zampa and Steve Smith kept a smart hold at short cover, things began to crumble.

Marsh played well here, recognising the difficulties of his seamers and relying instead on his selection of slow bowling options. Budding partnerships were repeatedly ended before they could fully develop through a mixture of clinical out cricket and some poorly calculated heaves. Jamie Smith might have expected a first encounter with Starc or Hazlewood but was instead taken out by Matt Short’s off-spin, while Liam Livingstone, in form during the T20s, tried to take on Zampa at the start of a new phase but was caught on the rope by Cameron Green.

Considering how Jacob Bethell handled Zampa in Cardiff last weekend, a single from Livingstone might have been wiser here. Instead, it meant Bethell had to command the end and although he ended up picking up four boundaries for a potentially valuable 35, the ODI debutant was the first of two wickets in two balls as Head wrapped up the innings with his handy off-breaks.

As is sometimes the case with Head, the start to his innings was a little mixed. As well as the one early chance that Carse misjudged and almost recovered, the left-hander also survived a couple of early attacks from Jofra Archer in his first ODI in 18 months. But between a few Jaffas, Archer had problems with his radar and when he was finally ready, Head turned on the afterburners and scored a 92-ball century – his sixth in ODI cricket and one that sealed his team’s 13th consecutive victory. Even if a few faces are missing, Australia are world champions for a reason.