The Melbourne Cricket Ground: Australia stand-in skipper Steve Smith gave his take on the MCG wicket after the Boxing Day Test lasted just two days, with England winning by four wickets. He said that had the 10mm grass been 2mm shorter, it might have made a difference in the match.
The Melbourne Cricket Ground pitch came under the scanner after the Boxing Day Ashes Test between Australia and England finished in two days. As many as 36 wickets fell in 142 overs. It lasted for 952 balls, just five more than the series opener in Perth.
“It obviously offered a lot, 36 wickets in two days, it offered plenty. Had it been either 2mm shorter or a little less thatchy with 10mm, it might have been alright, but I’m not a groundsman, so it’s hard to judge. But it did look like it was going to offer a fair amount, probably a little more than I thought it would. I think the groundsman is always learning, but he’s produced some pretty good wickets in the last two years," Smith told SEN Cricket.
The MCG has previously been criticised for producing flat wickets that favoured batting, most notably during the 2017 Ashes Test, when only 24 wickets fell over five days. That surface drew widespread criticism, prompting match referee Ranjan Madugalle to issue a “poor” rating in his official assessment report.
"I think when I started, we didn’t have too many wickets like this, when I started, the MCG used to be run tickets, but that’s changed a bit over the last four or five years. It’s probably changed more into a better cricket wicket where bat and ball are competing against each other. The game’s changed in terms of the aggression batters use… if 10 years ago you saw Harry Brook come out and bat like that, you’d think, ‘What’s going on?!’.
"Brook was the top run scorer for England, and even Travis Head for us in the second innings, it was probably one of those wickets where you had to go a little harder," he added.
Fast bowler Mitchell Starc echoed Smith’s comments, saying, ‘Nobody wants to see two-day Test matches.’
"I guess you saw it start to play a bit truer in the back end of yesterday. Would a couple of mm off change the game much? Or was it application? Or even just two good attacks?
Fast bowler Mitchell Starc echoed Smith’s comments, saying, ‘Nobody wants to see two-day Test matches.’
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"Batters got that one last week, and bowlers got one in their favour probably a bit too much this week. I saw last year it was 6 or 7mm, arguably if you make it 8mm, it’s probably a pretty good surface. It’s one to not dwell too much on and move on pretty quick," said Starc.