The Boxing Day Test at the MCG turned into a bowler’s paradise, with 20 wickets on Day 1 and Australia bowled out for 132 on Day 2, giving England a modest target. Experts and fans heavily criticized the pitch for excessively favouring fast bowlers.
The pitch laid out at the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG) for the Boxing Day Test between Australia and England has come under heavy scrutiny, with experts and former cricketers questioning the nature of the surface. The opening day of the fourth Ashes 2025 Test turned out to be a chaotic spectacle as 20 wickets fell across three sessions, with pacers from both sides dominating the proceedings.
Opting to bowl first, England's pace bowling attack, led by Josh Tongue, rattled Australia’s batting line-up on a green pitch, bundling out the hosts for 152 in 45.2 overs. Tongue was the standout with figures of 5/45 at an economy rate of 4 in 11.2 overs. In response, Australia's pacers, led by Michael Neser and Scott Boland, left England in a position of reeling as they bundled out the visitors for 110 in 29.5 overs, handing Australia a slender 42-run first-innings lead heading into the final few overs of the opening day.
England and Australia picked up 20 wickets in 75.1 overs on the opening day of the Boxing Day Test, marking the first time that a total of 20 wickets have fallen on day one of an Ashes Test since 1950, leaving Australia with a slender 46-run lead after reaching 46/0.
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Australia Batters Struggle on Day 2 of MCG Test
The bowler-dominated theme on the opening day of the Boxing Day Test spilled into Day 2, with England pacers dominating the Australia batting line-up once again in the second innings at the Melbourne Cricket Ground. Resuming their batting on 4/0, Australia were collapsed to 88/6 in 22.5 overs, with Brydon Carse and Josh Tongue leading the charge with hostile spells that exploited the seam movement on a lively MCG pitch.
Steve Smith and Cameron Green showed some resistance to steady Australia’s ship through their 31-run stand for the seventh wicket before the latter’s dismissal at 119/7. Thereafter, Australia were reduced to 121/9 in 32 overs. Eventually, the hosts were bundled out for 132, with skipper Steve Smith unbeaten on 24, and set a 175-run target for England to chase with three days left.
Brydon Carse led England’s bowling attack in the second innings with figures of 4/34 at an economy rate of 3.10 in 11 overs. Skipper Ben Stokes picked three wickets and conceded just 24 at an economy rate of 3.2 overs in his spell of 7.3 overs. While Josh Tongue, who was the standout bowler on the opening day with five wickets, registered figures of 2/44 at an economy rate of 4.00 in 11 overs.
In both innings of the Boxing Day Test, Australia struggled to cope with the relentless pace and movement on offer, as the green MCG pitch enabled England bowlers to exploit the conditions to full effect. A collective effort from England's pacers saw the visitors dominate the contest, consistently troubling Australia’s top and middle order and keeping the hosts under pressure throughout both innings.
MCG Pitch Being Questioned
With bowlers dominating the proceedings on both days of the Boxing Day Test, while Australia batters struggled to build substantial partnerships despite a slender lead on Day 2, the MCG pitch has come under heavy scrutiny, with former cricketers and cricket enthusiasts criticizing the nature of the surface that was laid out for offering excessive assistance to fast bowlers.
Former England captain Michael Vaughan called the MCG pitch a ‘joke’ after 26 wickets fell under 100 overs across three innings. At the same time, Dinesh Karthik described the surface as ‘ordinary’ and questioned how four Tests in the series concluded in short spans.
Fans and cricket enthusiasts also joined the chorus, demanding accountability from the pitch curator and Cricket Australia for laying out a bowling-friendly pitch, which heavily skewed the contest in favor of bowlers rather than offering a fair contest between bat and ball.
Meanwhile, England are trailing 0-3 and already Ashes 2025 after losing the third Test at Adelaide Oval. However, England will look to salvage its pride by winning the MCG and Sydney Tests to avoid a series whitewash.
