🔗 Share this article ‘The Pitch is Doing Quite a Bit’: Josh Tongue Celebrates Five-Wicket Haul and Defends England Batting Approach. After collapsing to a total of 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 action-packed day where 20 wickets fell. “I’ve always wanted to play in the Ashes, if it’s home or away, and this obviously feels very special. To be here at the Melbourne Cricket Ground with all my family in as well makes it even better.” The state of the game is already leaning towards Australia, 46 runs ahead on first innings and set to bat again on an notoriously lively surface that may now settle on day two. But this was also Tongue’s day, 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 this historic day. Obviously coming to the ground here this morning, winning the toss and electing to bowl first, I thought we did a superb job as a collective attack.” “Credit to them, they bowled well too. 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 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 line was certainly beneficial, it helped me, for sure, with my natural angle.” Justifying the Strategy There may be something jarring for English fans in hearing Tongue echo the familiar mantras about applying scoreboard pressure, 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. “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 bowled out in less than 30 overs. “There wasn’t really a big chat at all. I feel like we want to immediately put the bowlers under pressure, so whoever walks out thinks it’s the appropriate moment to accelerate or put them on the back foot. “I think, knowing where you’re scoring options are is vitally important on this sort of wicket when the ball is moving around. But yeah, I thought Harry Brook batted exceptionally 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 latest stage in a run of cross-format success against Steve Smith, but he laughed off suggestions he might “hold an advantage” over him. “No, he’s clearly a world-class batter. I’ve grown up watching him, 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. 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.” A View from the Other End There was a more ominous take at close of play from an Australian bowler, a leading wicket-taker in England’s reply and a long-time observer of the Melbourne pitch. “We know it can move real fast 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 offer as much. It could be a different proposition second innings.” Australia will begin day two with 10 wickets in hand and their aggressive left-hander 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 brief reply. “As a bowler, I'd say no”.
After collapsing to a total of 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 action-packed day where 20 wickets fell. “I’ve always wanted to play in the Ashes, if it’s home or away, and this obviously feels very special. To be here at the Melbourne Cricket Ground with all my family in as well makes it even better.” The state of the game is already leaning towards Australia, 46 runs ahead on first innings and set to bat again on an notoriously lively surface that may now settle on day two. But this was also Tongue’s day, 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 this historic day. Obviously coming to the ground here this morning, winning the toss and electing to bowl first, I thought we did a superb job as a collective attack.” “Credit to them, they bowled well too. 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 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 line was certainly beneficial, it helped me, for sure, with my natural angle.” Justifying the Strategy There may be something jarring for English fans in hearing Tongue echo the familiar mantras about applying scoreboard pressure, 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. “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 bowled out in less than 30 overs. “There wasn’t really a big chat at all. I feel like we want to immediately put the bowlers under pressure, so whoever walks out thinks it’s the appropriate moment to accelerate or put them on the back foot. “I think, knowing where you’re scoring options are is vitally important on this sort of wicket when the ball is moving around. But yeah, I thought Harry Brook batted exceptionally 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 latest stage in a run of cross-format success against Steve Smith, but he laughed off suggestions he might “hold an advantage” over him. “No, he’s clearly a world-class batter. I’ve grown up watching him, 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. 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.” A View from the Other End There was a more ominous take at close of play from an Australian bowler, a leading wicket-taker in England’s reply and a long-time observer of the Melbourne pitch. “We know it can move real fast 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 offer as much. It could be a different proposition second innings.” Australia will begin day two with 10 wickets in hand and their aggressive left-hander 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 brief reply. “As a bowler, I'd say no”.