Test cricket is the wonderful sporting spectacle it is because of the nature of the drawn fourth Ashes Test in Melbourne, not in spite of it.
Unsurprisingly, since the end of the Boxing Day Test – and even before it finished, to be fair – if the talk hasn’t been about the run-scoring feats of Steven Smith and Alastair Cook, it’s been about the state of the drop-in wicket at the MCG.
Depending on which extreme you want to go, the wicket was primarily responsible for the death of this Test match, or Test cricket itself.
And let’s not beat around the bush, it wasn’t a great pitch.
I mean, the former batsman in me would have loved to have batted on it, and from a potential run-scoring perspective it may go down as one of the greatest cricket wickets ever prepared. But from the perspective of needing to take twenty wickets to win a match over the course of five days on a deck that didn’t so much evolve, as it just existed out in the middle of the great cricket coliseum, it wasn’t a great pitch.
The headlines since the Test concluded don’t make for great reading either, starting with outright blame and populism.
“MCG drop-ins under review after bore draw” (ESPN CricInfo)
“Cricket was the loser in this tedious Test farce” (The Australian)
“How the MCG pitch which produced the boring Boxing Day draw came to be” (Fox Sports)
“Shane Warne says day-night Test will solve MCG pitch farce” (Daily Telegraph)
Then there were pieces from the hand-wringing extreme.
“Lifeless drop-in pitch does Test cricket no favours” (The Times)
…before finally moving onto interstate parochialism.
“Drop-in wicket should never be allowed at SCG after MCG shocker” (Sydney Morning Herald)
All of them carry degrees of validity. But the signs were also there. In the three Sheffield Shield games played there before the Test, 36, 27, and 23 wickets fell at the expense of 1310, 846, and 974 runs, respectively. The first two games included second innings declarations, and Victoria batted just once in the third.
(Photo by Scott Barbour/Getty Images)
After the highs of the Adelaide and Perth contests (and that’s not at all to suggest Brisbane was a doddle), Melbourne was always going to present the biggest challenge to Australia achieving their third Ashes whitewash in the last four home series.
But if we’re honest with ourselves, and what we know and love Test cricket to be – a complicated but intoxicating mix of a simple game and changing conditions – achieving a result in a Test match isn’t supposed to be easy. Traffic over the course of five days, let alone a five-Test series is rarely completely one-way.
The Melbourne draw serves as a timely reminder of why the three Tests that preceded were so good to watch for cricket lovers. As it stands, there were so many superb elements to the Boxing Day Test that don’t deserve to be lost in the throng of ‘The pitch was crap’ commentary that is still dominating.
Cook’s fifth double century and third-highest score overall now means the 33-year-old has resumed control over his destiny as a Test batsman; Stuart Broad’s first innings 4/51 marked a crucial comeback for a player who by his own admission couldn’t really disagree with much of the criticism of his performance in the series.
David Warner posted a second consecutive MCG Test century and was on track for a third; Smith’s match output created yet more records again, and Mitch Marsh’s second innings 166-ball 29 not out may, in time, become even more valuable to the Australian team than his 181 in Perth a fortnight earlier.
England still had a chance of forcing a result, too. When Shaun Marsh pushed at a delivery from Broad just before Lunch on Day 5, Australia’s second-innings lead was just 14, and Warner had departed only seven overs earlier.
Smith had only just reached his fifty. They’d have known, just as a nervous Australian dressing room and plenty of nervous Australian fans knew, that even just one more wicket soon after lunch would’ve thrown the game wide open.
Instead, Smith and Mitch Marsh survived another 48.2 overs from that point to achieve the draw.
Was this Steve Smith’s best Test century? AFP PHOTO / GREG WOOD
Reports of Test cricket’s demise on the back of this one drawn Test are, as seems to be the case with most knee-jerk commentary these days, grossly exaggerated.
There was so much engrossing cricket played in Melbourne that it’s not funny. Even the rain breaks over the last two days helped add to the intrigue of the contest.
You want to look at a result that doesn’t help Test cricket’s cause? Check out the scorecard of the South Africa-Zimbabwe Boxing Day Test in Port Elizabeth, a match scheduled as a four-day match but didn’t even require Tea on Day 2.
The Ashes will stay in Australia; that much has been decided already. But the Melbourne draw has ensured the Fifth Test in Sydney this week starts as a very even contest.
And whatever the result in Sydney, the Melbourne draw will have played a huge role in its significance in the context of the broader series result.
Matth
Guest
Hard to disagree with that.
AndyFNQ
Guest
No sorry the accomplishments were tarnished by the pitch they were made on. Cook's score showed great concentration but if the pitch had anything to offer I don't believe he could have had so much success at the crease. Bowler's averages were unfairly damaged during this match due to the uneven nature of the contest, and the wicket (which both teams were unhappy with) both denied the chance of a result and also resulted in a match that was a very poor spectacle. So in answer, sorry but no I don't wan't to see more of that, draws should be earned, not preordained by preventable failures in ground preparation.
AndyFNQ
Guest
I see your point, but that's why I said as an exception. There may be times when a side can deny opposition to force a draw, but it certainly shouldn't be a regular occurance, rather the incredible recovery of a team that looked beaten managing to hold on. This was not one of those draws; it was the failure to prepare an adaquate test wicket that provided an even contest between bat and ball neutering the attacks of both sides. Drop in pitches must change to avoid more test matches like this one. Also thanks for the reply it's appreciated :)
Pom in Oz
Roar Guru
I'm sorry mate. This was an absolute joke of a pitch. I believe Cricket Australia are required to answer as to why it was so poor. Why try to make out it was interesting? It wasn't. It was so bad they couldn't even get Mitch Marsh out twice and he's freakin' woeful!
Freddie
Guest
They'll be just as far apart when they play in England in two years time. Test cricket is mainly down to home advantage these days. Australia hasn't won in England since 2001. England has managed it once in goodness knows how many years in Australia. Australia can't win on the sub-continent, but rarely lose here etc etc etc.
Graeme Heaton
Guest
The MCG pitch was a revenue raising dud designed to get 5 days cricket at the venue where the crowds are largest, it is as simple as that. The session that Australia only made 40 odd runs is the worst cricket I have ever witnessed. Australia is now playing unfamiliar cricket to me. The Australian team now bat slow and leave any ball that is not on the stumps. I prefer the old Australian way of attack with aggressive batting and backing themselves to get away with it more often than not. I assure you that as long as Smith (Captain Boring) and pitches like this are served up the numbers will fall off rapidly.
Steele
Guest
Was there more to the test than just the pitch you ask? Well I’d argue the highlight reel was shorter than usual, as a result of, you guessed it(a crappy strip!). It was a bloody snorefest, and I suspect you like going against the grain for the sake of it. It is so frustrating because the anticipation for any ashes test is huge, let alone Boxing Day. The punters feel let down.
Steele
Guest
Lots of presumptions made about non purists. I consider myself a purist, yet I didn’t enjoy it at all as a spectacle. I love test match cricket and rarely watch the pyjama stuff, unless it’s a World Cup.
Internal Fixation
Guest
Love your work
Brett McKay
Expert
Should've but wasn't. There's no column on the scoreboard for nearly-dismissals..
Jeffrey Dun
Roar Rookie
A couple of dropped catches helped Brett. Should have been out for 66. Warner scored 180 odd in two digs while Smith scored 170 for once out.
Brett McKay
Expert
Jeffrey, if it was so easy, why was Cook the only one to score big?
Wayne
Roar Guru
ICC have rated the pitch as POOR
jamesb
Guest
But Adelaide is played under different conditions. You have one session that is played at night.
Steele
Guest
Well said Jeffrey, my thoughts exactly. Changes need to be made, I fear India might finally beat us at home if we don’t get a bit of life into the pitches. For many years now I look forward to watching the Aussies away series in S.A and England more than a home series. Just more balance between bat and ball. It’s bloody boring here.
Mike
Guest
True!
Steele
Guest
I call bulldust, it still would of been a draw imo, Sloane.
Alicesprings
Guest
It's a big if..but IF the new Perth's drop in plays OK as the Adelaide Oval has then surely the issues with the pitch is more to do with the curator than the fact that its a drop in?? If the Perth drop in does perform it will only increase the pressure on the GABBA and the SCG to follow suit.
Mike
Guest
Yes, but two very successful Australian captains and one of the greatest leg-spinners all felt that Joe Root missed an opportunity in the second innings. They felt that after Marsh was dismissed Root should have backed his spinners, including himself, with three or four catchers. Instead, he persisted with tired quicks, and a very defensive field. Coming from people with the experience of Clarke, Tubby and Warne, that carries weight. It indicates that a draw was not necessarily inevitable.
dave
Guest
From an individual players perspective these Aussie roads are good to boost your stats. Unlucky if you score a century in tough Indian conditions and then get dropped without a chance to cash in on the traditional Aussie summer run feast.