‘The Pitch is Doing Quite a Bit’: Josh Tongue Revels in Five-Fer and Justifies England Aggressive Mindset.
Despite being dismissed for a modest 110 in Melbourne, another chapter in a difficult tour on the current Ashes tour, but for the young seamer day one of the fourth Test was also a personal milestone.
“It’s a dream come true,” he stated at the end of a action-packed day where 20 wickets fell. “I’ve always wanted to play in the Ashes, whether at home or abroad, and this is incredibly special. Being here at the MCG with all my family in as well is the icing on the cake.”
The match situation is already leaning towards Australia, with a 46-run first-innings lead and batting again on an notoriously lively surface that could potentially ease on day two. But this was also Tongue’s day, the standout bowler with a personal best figures of 5/45 as England rolled Australia out for 152.
“It was a fantastic day of Test cricket on this historic day. Arriving at the venue this morning, winning the toss and electing to bowl first, I thought we did a superb job as a collective attack.”
“And obviously they’ve bowled well as well. It’s a pitch which is doing quite a bit. But we’ve got to just regroup tomorrow and repeat the performance.”
“I feel like if you put the ball in the right areas, which I felt like we did today as a group, you’re going to get your rewards. It feels like that fuller length definitely helped, it helped me, for sure, with my natural angle.”
Defending the Approach
There may be something jarring for English fans in hearing Tongue repeated the playbook chapter headings about putting pressure on their opponents, playing an positive style of cricket and so on, something England did here by just about crawling past three figures at 3.7 runs an over. “It’s how we play our cricket. We play a very positive brand of cricket. We try and put pressure on the opposition and seize the initiative.”
Tongue said there was no specific plan on how England would bat on this surface, perhaps inadvisably given they were dismissed inside 30 overs. “We didn’t have an extensive discussion. I feel like we want to immediately put the bowlers under pressure, so whoever walks out thinks it’s the appropriate moment to obviously shift a gear or put them on the back foot.
“I think, identifying scoring areas is obviously crucial on this sort of wicket when the ball is doing a bit more. But yeah, I thought Harry Brook batted exceptionally well. The runs that he got were absolutely vital in obviously a small first innings total.”
Dismissing a Legend
Tongue’s spell also contained the most recent instance in a run of consistent performances against the Australian captain, but he dismissed suggestions he might “have the wood” over him.
“No, he’s clearly a world-class batter. I watched him as a kid, and obviously getting him out is a very special feeling. But yeah, to me, it’s just another batter that I want to try and get out. It doesn’t really matter who he is. My main goal is to get the batter out at the other end. So yeah, it’s obviously a nice feeling.”
A View from the Other End
There was a more cautious assessment at stumps from Michael Neser, a key wicket taker in England’s reply and a career-long student of the MCG surface.
“We know it can deteriorate quickly on day one and day two, then when the wicket compacts and loses moisture it can be nice to bat on. So I don’t want to assume tomorrow that the pitch is going to do a lot. It could be a different story in the second innings.”
Australia will begin day two with all wickets intact and their aggressive left-hander at the crease, alongside surely one of the best-supported nightwatchmen in Test history, the local boy Scott Boland. Asked if he felt the green-tinged wicket did excessive amounts on day one of a Test, Neser had a brief reply. “I’m a bowler, so no”.
