Boxing Day at the MCG descended into chaos as 20 wickets fell in front of a record crowd on the opening day of the fourth Ashes Test, with both sides bowled out in less than seven hours.
After Australia was rolled for 152 courtesy of a career-best performance from England quick Josh Tongue, England collapsed from 4-16 to 110 all out as the fast bowlers wreaked havoc on a grassy deck in the Victorian capital. It was the most wickets to fall on the first day of a Test match in Australia since 1951.
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The vicious seam movement proved too hot to handle, with no player from either side managing more than 41 on the bowler friendlt surface
There were 94,199 fans in attendance at the MCG on Friday, topping the previous venue record of 93,013 for the 2015 World Cup final between Australia and New Zealand. However, the Boxing Day contest is at serious risk of becoming a two-day affair if the carnage continues on Saturday.
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Earlier, Australia was bowled out in just 45.2 overs after England captain Ben Stokes won the toss and chose to bowl first, with Tongue taking 5-45 from 11.2 overs, his third five-wicket haul in Tests. All-rounder Michael Neser top-scored with a fighting 35, while seamer Gus Atkinson chipped in with two crucial wickets.
Openers Travis Head and Jake Weatherald put together 27 before Atkinson unearthed an early breakthrough, with the South Australian chopping on for 12, a dismissal that prompted a brief collapse of 3-7. Weatherald strangled down the leg side for 10 before Labuschagne drove on the up with hard hands and edged towards the slips cordon, both falling to Tongue.
Later in the morning session, the Nottinghamshire quick snared the prized scalp of stand-in captain Smith, bowled through the gate for 9, to leave the Australians in dire straits at 4-51. It was the third time Tongue has removed the New South Welshman in Tests across three innings, having also dismissed him in the County Championship and The Hundred.
Veteran Usman Khawaja and wicketkeeper Alex Carey added 38 on either side of the lunch break before the duo departed in quick succession. The Queenslander feathered a peach from Atkinson through to the wicketkeeper, with England successfully overturning the on-field decision via a murmur on Snicko, before Carey flicked a full delivery from Stokes directly towards leg slip, falling into an obvious trap.
All-rounders Cameron Green and Neser set about rebuilding the innings with a counterpunching 52-run partnership for the seventh wicket before the West Australian threw his wicket away by sprinting through for a suicidal single, with Brydon Carse hitting the stumps at the non-striker’s end. The run out sparked a late collapse of 4-9, with Tongue helping clean up the tail.
Carse, who wasted the new ball in a wayward opening spell, removed Mitchell Starc caught in the outfield for 1, albeit with some lingering conjecture on whether he had overstepped the crease.
England’s innings got off to a dramatic start, with four wickets falling across the first eight overs. Ben Duckett’s woeful tour continued, with the opener’s leading edge sailing delicately towards mid-off for 2, before the recalled Jacob Bethell was trapped on the pads by Neser for 1, prompting further debate on the poisoned chalice of England’s No. 3 position.
Zak Crawley became Starc’s 25th victim of the series after edging towards second slip, where Smith held onto a smart catch, while at the other end superstar Joe Root feathered behind for a 15-ball duck.
A whirlwind cameo from Harry Brook, headlined by a couple of audacious sixes, revived England’s innings following the horror top-order collapse, combining with captain Ben Stokes for a rapid 50-run partnership for the fifth wicket. The talented Yorkshireman carelessly charged at Australia’s fast bowlers, deciding that attack was the best form of defence.
Brook’s luck ran out when hometown hero Scott Boland struck him on the knee roll, gone LBW for 41 from 34 balls, with the Victorian seamer knocking over Jamie Smith’s middle stump with an in-ducker shortly after.
An inside edge from all-rounder Will Jacks that carried through to gloveman Carey exposed England’s tail, while Stokes was caught in the slips cordon for 16 after wafting at a wide delivery from Neser, who finished with 4-45 from ten overs.
Green snared the final wicket with 11 minutes remaining in the day, leaving Australia’s openers with one over to survive before stumps. The hosts sent out Boland as a nightwatcher to face the final six deliveries, with Bethell putting down a one-handed chance on the penultimate delivery of the day, adding to the drama.
But Boland earned a raucous applause from his home crowd after he successfully completed the nervy task, finishing the day with a flashy boundary through gully.
Australia was 0-4 at stumps, leading by 46 runs.
The fourth Ashes Test between England and Australia resumes on Saturday at 10.30am AEDT.
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