🔗 Share this article ‘The Surface is Providing Assistance’: Tongue Revels in Five-Fer and Justifies England’s Aggressive Mindset. Despite being dismissed for a modest 110 in Melbourne, another revolution of the unceasing wheel of pain on this Ashes campaign, but for the young seamer day one of the Boxing Day Test was also a personal milestone. “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, whether at home or abroad, 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 match situation 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 undeniably Tongue’s moment, the standout bowler 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 Boxing Day. Arriving at the venue this morning, securing the toss and putting the Aussies in to bat, 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 put the ball in the right 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, for sure, with my angle.” Defending the Approach There may be a sense of dissonance for English fans in hearing Tongue echo the familiar mantras 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. “It’s how we play our 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, arguably unwisely 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 whoever walks out thinks it’s the appropriate moment to accelerate or put them into pressure. “I think, identifying scoring areas is vitally important on this sort of wicket when the ball is moving around. But yeah, I thought Brookie batted really 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 dismissed suggestions he might “have the wood” over him. “No, he’s clearly a world-class batter. I watched him as a kid, 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 a great feeling.” A View from the Other End There was a more ominous take at stumps from an Australian bowler, a leading 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 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 proposition in the second innings.” Australia will begin day two with all wickets intact and their aggressive left-hander 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 excessive amounts on day one of a Test, Neser had a brief reply. “I’m a bowler, so no”.
Despite being dismissed for a modest 110 in Melbourne, another revolution of the unceasing wheel of pain on this Ashes campaign, but for the young seamer day one of the Boxing Day Test was also a personal milestone. “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, whether at home or abroad, 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 match situation 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 undeniably Tongue’s moment, the standout bowler 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 Boxing Day. Arriving at the venue this morning, securing the toss and putting the Aussies in to bat, 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 put the ball in the right 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, for sure, with my angle.” Defending the Approach There may be a sense of dissonance for English fans in hearing Tongue echo the familiar mantras 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. “It’s how we play our 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, arguably unwisely 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 whoever walks out thinks it’s the appropriate moment to accelerate or put them into pressure. “I think, identifying scoring areas is vitally important on this sort of wicket when the ball is moving around. But yeah, I thought Brookie batted really 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 dismissed suggestions he might “have the wood” over him. “No, he’s clearly a world-class batter. I watched him as a kid, 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 a great feeling.” A View from the Other End There was a more ominous take at stumps from an Australian bowler, a leading 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 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 proposition in the second innings.” Australia will begin day two with all wickets intact and their aggressive left-hander 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 excessive amounts on day one of a Test, Neser had a brief reply. “I’m a bowler, so no”.