- England vs Australia, 4th Test, ist day
- Australia 3 for 244 (Warner 103, Smith 65*) v England
There was a distinct hint of Christmas about Australia’s batting on the first day at the MCG this year: one large gift, a hectic morning, a post-lunch doze, and a second wind as the evening approached. On a day when David Warner scored his second consecutive century in Melbourne Tests, Australia went to stumps in a satisfactory position at 3 for 244, with Steven Smith on 65 and Shaun Marsh on 31. And yet, despite the scoreline, it was a day on which England’s toil deserved respect.
Whatever presents Smith opened on Christmas Day were nothing compared to the gift of winning the toss – something he had not done in a Test since March – on a hot day at the MCG, where the pitch was so flat it looked like one curated for the BBL, not the Ashes. And during the first session, there was nothing in the pitch for England’s bowlers but despair as Warner raced towards 83 at lunch, with Australia at 0 for 102.
But, as if made drowsy by tryptophan, the Australians slowed dramatically after the break. Only 43 runs were added between lunch and tea for the losses of Warner and Cameron Bancroft. If this pitch was a road, England’s bowlers had suddenly turned into sleeping policemen. And yet England still faced the challenge of dismissing Smith, which nobody has done in a Boxing Day Test since Umesh Yadav in 2014, and thus Australia accumulated a further 99 in the final session.
The most memorable moment of the day for the 88,000 spectators came when Warner was on 99 and tried his risky short-arm pull against the debutant seamer Tom Curran. As the ball ballooned off the top edge and straight to Stuart Broad at mid-on, Warner’s expression was one of disbelief at throwing away his 21st Test century. The disbelief quickly spread throughout the stadium as replays showed Curran had overstepped, and Warner was reprieved by a retrospective no-ball call.
Curran was denied his maiden Test wicket – and by stumps still had not claimed it – and next ball Warner brought up his century from his 130th delivery with a single clipped off his hips. Curran joined Ben Stokes and Mark Wood as England players in recent years to have missed out on their first Test wicket due to a no-ball, but he bowled well throughout the day in unhelpful conditions.
So, for the most part, did all of England’s bowlers, with the exception of Moeen Ali, who leaked nearly a run a ball from his six overs. That Joe Root used the part-time legspin of Dawid Malan more on the opening day of this Test than he did Moeen’s offbreaks was revealing, and not encouraging for Moeen’s hopes of retaining his place in the side.
James Anderson took his 519th Test wicket, drawing level with Courtney Walsh, when Warner edged behind for 103 to a delivery that moved away just enough, and Stuart Broad ended a 69-over wicketless streak when he lured Usman Khawaja into an edge behind on 17 from 65 balls. Chris Woakes had struck the first blow when he trapped Bancroft lbw on 26, ending a difficult stay for the opener.
The opening partnership was worth 122 but Warner accounted for nearly 100 of this himself, and Bancroft never really looked comfortable. In the opening session, he was often seen fending short deliveries awkwardly, as if having trouble picking up the length or pace. It was a stark contrast to the free scoring from Warner, who struck 13 fours and one six – lofted over long-on off Moeen.
Likewise, Khawaja had difficulty in getting going, but by stumps the Australians had a strong 84-run partnership from Smith and Marsh that looked like setting up a good total. Along the way, Smith moved past Cheteshwar Pujara to become the leading run scorer in Test cricket in 2017, although South Africa’s Dean Elgar has a Test in hand against Zimbabwe in which he could yet make a push for the top of the table.
Of course, England would also have to find a way to get Smith out, and there was no evidence that in that regard Melbourne would be any different from Brisbane or Perth. If winning the toss on this pitch was the perfect post-Christmas present for Australia’s captain, another hundred would be even better.
