‘The Surface is Providing Assistance’: Josh Tongue Celebrates Five-Fer and Defends England Aggressive Mindset.
Despite being dismissed for a modest 110 in the MCG, yet another challenging episode on this Ashes campaign, 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 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 also Tongue’s day, the star performer with a personal best figures of 5/45 as England rolled Australia out for 152.
“It was a fantastic day of Test cricket on Boxing Day. Obviously coming to the ground here this morning, securing 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 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 get your rewards. 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 echo the familiar mantras about putting pressure on their opponents, playing an positive style of cricket and so on, something England did here by just about crawling past three figures at 3.7 runs an over. “That’s our brand of cricket. We play a highly aggressive style of cricket. We try and force the issue 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. “We didn’t have an extensive discussion. I feel like we want to immediately put the bowlers under pressure, so the next batter in thinks it’s the right time to accelerate or put them into pressure.
“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 Harry Brook batted really well. The runs that he got were absolutely vital in obviously a small first innings total.”
Dismissing a Legend
Tongue’s spell also contained the most recent instance in a run of consistent performances against the Australian captain, but he dismissed suggestions he might “hold an advantage” over him.
“No, he’s clearly a world-class batter. 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. It doesn’t really matter who he is. My main goal is to get the batter out at the other end. So yeah, it’s obviously a nice feeling.”
The Bowler’s Perspective
There was a more ominous take at stumps from Michael Neser, a key 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 hardens up and dries out it can be nice to bat on. 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 10 wickets in hand 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 grassy pitch did too much on day one of a Test, Neser had a brief reply. “I’m a bowler, so no”.