‘The Wicket is Offering Plenty’: Tongue Revels in Five-Wicket Haul and Justifies England Aggressive Mindset.
England may have been bowled out for 110 in the MCG, another chapter in a difficult tour on the current Ashes tour, but for the young seamer day one of the Boxing Day Test was also a career high.
“Dreams come true,” he stated at the end of a hectic day where a remarkable 20 wickets tumbled. “I’ve always wanted to play in the Ashes, if it’s home or away, and this is incredibly special. Being here at the MCG with all my family in as well is the icing on the cake.”
The state of the game is already stacked in Australia’s favour, 46 runs ahead on first innings and batting again on an alarmingly sporty pitch that could potentially ease on day two. But this was undeniably Tongue’s moment, the standout bowler with a personal best figures of 5/45 as England rolled Australia out for 152.
“It’s been an amazing day of Test match cricket on Boxing Day. Arriving at the venue this morning, winning the toss and putting the Aussies in to bat, I thought we did a superb job as a bowling unit.”
“Credit to them, they bowled well too. It’s a surface offering significant movement. But we’ve got to just come back 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 bowling unit, you’re going to reap the benefits. It feels like that fuller length was certainly beneficial, it helped me, definitely, with my angle.”
Justifying the Strategy
There may be a sense of dissonance for English fans in hearing Tongue repeated the playbook chapter headings about putting pressure on their opponents, playing an attractive brand of cricket and so on, something England did here by just about crawling past three figures at a rate of 3.7 per over. “That’s our brand of 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, arguably unwisely given they were bowled out in less than 30 overs. “We didn’t have an extensive discussion. I feel like we want to put pressure back on to the opposition, so the next batter in thinks it’s the right time to accelerate or put them on the back foot.
“I think, identifying scoring areas is vitally important on this sort of wicket when the ball is moving around. But yeah, I thought Harry Brook batted really well. The runs that he got were obviously crucial in a low first-innings score.”
Claiming a Prized Scalp
Tongue’s spell also contained the latest stage in a run of cross-format success 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 huge thrill. But yeah, to me, it’s just another batsman that I want to try and get out. His reputation doesn't matter. My main goal is to get the batter out at the other end. So yeah, it’s a great feeling.”
A View from the Other End
There was a more ominous take at close of play from Michael Neser, a leading wicket-taker in England’s reply and a long-time observer of the MCG surface.
“We know it can move real fast on day one and day two, then when the wicket hardens up and dries out 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 proposition in the second innings.”
Australia will resume on day two with all wickets intact and Travis Head at the crease, alongside surely one of the most popular nightwatchmen in Test history, the homegrown talent Scott Boland. Asked if he felt the green-tinged wicket did excessive amounts on day one of a Test, Neser had a brief reply. “As a bowler, I'd say no”.
