‘The Wicket is Offering Plenty’: Josh Tongue Celebrates Five-Fer and Justifies England’s Batting Approach.
Despite being dismissed for a modest 110 in Melbourne, another chapter in a difficult tour on this Ashes campaign, but for Josh Tongue day one of the Boxing Day Test was also a career high.
“Dreams come true,” Tongue said at the end of a action-packed day where a remarkable 20 wickets tumbled. “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 is the icing on the cake.”
The state of the game 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 also Tongue’s day, the star performer 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 this historic day. Obviously coming to the ground here this morning, securing 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 regroup 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 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 echo the familiar mantras about putting pressure on their opponents, playing an attractive brand of cricket and so on, something England did here by scraping past 100 runs at 3.7 runs an over. “That’s our brand of cricket. We play a very positive brand 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, arguably unwisely given they were dismissed inside 30 overs. “We didn’t have an extensive discussion. I feel like we want to put pressure back on to the opposition, 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 Brookie batted exceptionally well. The runs that he got were absolutely vital 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 obviously an amazing player. 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 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 leading 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 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 second innings.”
Australia will begin day two with all wickets intact 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 green-tinged wicket did too much on day one of a Test, Neser had a concise answer. “I’m a bowler, so no”.
