The Boxing Day Test match between England and Australia finished within 2 days, sparking a global outrage among cricket fans. Former India batter Akash Chopra weighed in on the controversy, stating that the media coverage surrounding the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG) pitch reeked of hypocrisy from the English and the Australian media.
Speaking on his YouTube channel, Chopra said that if something similar happened in India, the English media would not waste time calling it the ‘death of Test cricket’, where they would criticise India’s turning pitches. Chopra called out the media narrative around the MCG pitch, stating that the overseas media are portraying it like it is okay for Test matches to end within the first two days.
“When the match ended in Ahmedabad in two days, a BBC report said, ‘death of Test cricket.’ Here, they say it’s actually not bad, that two-day Test matches are also great. Hypocrisy much. Something there and something else here,” Aakash Chopra said on his YouTube show.
A total of 142 overs were playing in the Boxing Day Test match at the MCG. With the ball seaming around profusely, the batters found it incredibly difficult to bat time on the wicket. It resulted in a low-scoring thriller where England clinched the game by 4 wickets.
Expanding on his concerns, Chopra pointed out the disparity in how media and commentators addressed two-day finishes across recent high-profile Tests. “I am talking about the hypocrisy. The match ended in two days in Perth. The ICC rates it a very good surface. The entire world says the pitch was good and that the batters’ technique has become bad. Then the same thing happened in Melbourne. The match ended in two days. There also they say the pitch was good, there was slightly more help, but the batters’ technique has become bad,” Chopra said.
Chopra also referenced England captain Ben Stokes’ response after the match, noting the difference in tone when discussing overseas versus subcontinental pitches. “Ben Stokes spoke very diplomatically because these guys, when they are talking about each other, they are very diplomatic. He said that it was favoring one skill more. If it had been a rank turner in India, they would have said it’s like the death of Test cricket, and what sort of pitch it is? There also it is helping the spin-bowling skill a little more,” he added.
Chopra further highlighted the fact that not a single specialist spinner was named in either of the teams’ playing XIs. The former batter said that the situation was reversed in India where both teams would carry and all-spin attack, the overseas media would break out in criticism.
“Not even a single over of spin was bowled on the Melbourne ground, and the match got over. How is that right? If a Test match happens in India or in subcontinental conditions and a single over of fast bowling is not bowled, there is an uproar, but that’s not the case here,” he said. The Melbourne Test ended without a single over of spin, yet failed to spark the same level of international controversy as similar fast-bowler-dominated games in Asia.
Ashes: MCG Test Was Bad For Business
The International Cricket Council (ICC) has officially rated the MCG surface as ‘unsatisfactory’, with match referee Jeff Crowe stating, “The MCG pitch was too much in favour of the bowlers. With 20 wickets falling on the first day, 16 on the second day and no batter even reaching a half-century, the pitch was ‘Unsatisfactory’ as per the guidelines and the venue gets one demerit point.” This assessment places the venue third from the bottom in pitch quality among recent Tests.
A total of 36 wickets fell in just 142 overs, with the match concluding before a single player could reach a half-century. Fans holding tickets for later days were left disappointed. Cricket Australia’s chief of cricket, James Allsopp, commented, “We were disappointed for the fans holding tickets for days three and four, and also the millions of fans excited to watch the action in Australia and around the world, that the pitch did not provide the MCG’s customary balance between bat and ball,” he said. MCG curator Matt Page admitted he was in “a state of shock” following the extraordinary collapse of both teams’ batting line-ups.
Despite the setback, Cricket Australia issued a statement of support for the ground staff: “We appreciate the outstanding work the MCC staff have done over recent years producing excellent Test match pitches. We’re confident they will deliver first-rate surfaces for next year’s NRMA Insurance Boxing Day Test against New Zealand and the hugely anticipated 150th Anniversary Test against England in March 2027.” Under ICC rules, a venue risks a ban if it accumulates six demerit points within a five-year period.
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