‘The Surface is Providing Assistance’: Tongue Celebrates Five-Fer and Defends England Aggressive Mindset.

Despite being dismissed for a modest 110 in Melbourne, yet another challenging episode on the current Ashes tour, but for Josh Tongue day one of the Boxing Day Test was also a career high.

“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, whether at home or abroad, 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, with a 46-run first-innings lead 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 dismissed Australia 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 electing to bowl first, I thought we did an amazing job as a bowling unit.”

“Credit to them, they bowled well too. It’s a surface offering significant movement. But we’ve got to just regroup tomorrow and repeat the performance.”

“I feel like if you bowl in good areas, which I felt like we did today as a group, you’re going to get your rewards. It feels like that fuller length definitely helped, it helped me, for sure, with my natural angle.”

Justifying the Strategy

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 very positive brand 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, arguably unwisely 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 obviously shift a gear 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 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 consistent performances against the Australian captain, but he laughed off suggestions he might “have the wood” over him.

“No, he’s obviously an amazing player. I watched him as a kid, and dismissing him is a very special feeling. But yeah, to me, it’s just another batsman 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.”

A View from the Other End

There was a more ominous take at stumps from Michael Neser, 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 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 proposition second innings.”

Australia will resume on day two with 10 wickets in hand and their aggressive left-hander at the crease, alongside surely one of the best-supported nightwatchmen in Test history, the homegrown talent 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”.