‘The Wicket is Offering Plenty’: Tongue Revels in Five-Wicket Haul and Defends England Aggressive Mindset.
After collapsing to a total of 110 in the MCG, another revolution of the unceasing wheel of pain 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. “Playing in the Ashes has always been the goal, whether at home or abroad, and this is incredibly special. To be here at the Melbourne Cricket Ground with all my family in as well makes it even better.”
The match situation is already leaning towards Australia, 46 runs ahead on first innings and set to bat again on an alarmingly sporty pitch that may now settle on day two. But this was undeniably Tongue’s moment, the standout bowler with a personal best figures of 5/45 as England dismissed Australia 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 electing to bowl first, I thought we did an amazing 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 come back tomorrow and do the same again.”
“I feel like if you bowl in good areas, which I felt like we did today as a bowling unit, you’re going to reap the benefits. It feels like that fuller line definitely helped, it helped me, definitely, with my natural angle.”
Defending the Approach
There may be a sense of dissonance for English fans in hearing Tongue repeated the playbook chapter headings about applying scoreboard pressure, playing an positive style 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 highly aggressive style of cricket. We try and put pressure on the opposition and take it back to them.”
Tongue said there was no specific plan on how England would bat on this surface, perhaps inadvisably given they were bowled out in less than 30 overs. “There wasn’t really a big chat at all. I feel like we want to put pressure back on to the opposition, so the next batter in thinks it’s the appropriate moment to obviously shift a gear or put them into pressure.
“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 Brookie batted really well. The runs that he got were obviously crucial in obviously a small first innings total.”
Claiming a Prized Scalp
Tongue’s spell also contained the most recent instance in a run of cross-format success against the Australian captain, but he laughed off suggestions he might “have the wood” over him.
“No, he’s obviously an amazing player. I’ve grown up watching him, and dismissing him is a huge thrill. But yeah, to me, it’s just another batter that I want to try and get out. His reputation doesn't matter. My primary objective is to get the batter out at the other end. So yeah, it’s a great feeling.”
The Bowler’s Perspective
There was a more ominous take at stumps from an Australian bowler, a key wicket taker in England’s reply and a long-time observer of the Melbourne pitch.
“We know it can deteriorate quickly on day one and day two, then when the wicket compacts and loses moisture it can be good for batting. 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 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 local boy Scott Boland. Asked if he felt the grassy pitch did too much on day one of a Test, Neser had a concise answer. “I’m a bowler, so no”.
