‘The Surface is Providing Assistance’: Josh Tongue Celebrates Five-Wicket Haul and Defends England’s Aggressive Mindset.
After collapsing to a total of 110 in Melbourne, another revolution of the unceasing wheel of pain on the current Ashes tour, but for Josh Tongue day one of the fourth Test was also a personal milestone.
“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, if it’s home or away, and this obviously feels very 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 leaning towards Australia, with a 46-run first-innings lead and set to bat again on an alarmingly sporty pitch that could potentially ease on day two. But this was also Tongue’s day, the star performer 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. 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 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 line definitely helped, it helped me, definitely, with my natural 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 positive style of cricket and so on, something England did here by scraping past 100 runs 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 real direction on how England would bat on this surface, perhaps inadvisably given they were dismissed inside 30 overs. “There wasn’t really a big chat at all. I feel like we want to immediately put the bowlers under pressure, so the next batter in thinks it’s the appropriate moment to obviously shift a gear 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 doing a bit more. But yeah, I thought Brookie batted exceptionally well. The runs that he got were obviously crucial in a low first-innings score.”
Dismissing a Legend
Tongue’s spell also contained the latest stage 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 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. His reputation doesn't matter. My primary objective 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 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 have the preconceptions tomorrow that the pitch is going to offer as much. It could be a different story second innings.”
Australia will resume on day two with all wickets intact and Travis Head 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 too much on day one of a Test, Neser had a concise answer. “As a bowler, I'd say no”.
