Another game, another spicy MCG wicket.
In day one of Victoria and Queensland’s Sheffield Shield clash, 17 wickets fell at the Melbourne ground with the hosts collapsing before stumps.
The Bulls posted only 149 in the first innings, struggling to score runs on a wicket that had three millimetres less grass than the one that stunned the cricketing world during the recent Ashes series, which had 10 millimetres.
England won the fourth Test in less than 32 hours, with 36 wickets falling across two days in that contest with seam and bounce tearing through batting line-ups.
In reply to Queensland’s total on Thursday, Victoria sat at 7-61 at the end of day one — meaning 53 wickets have fallen in the last three days of cricket at the MCG.
Michael Neser was the pick of the bowlers for the visitors, finishing with 3/9 from nine overs.
Following the Ashes debacle, MCG head curator Matt Page confessed he was in a “state of shock” watching the Test unfold.
Now Victoria’s captain Peter Handscomb has gone into bat for Page, saying “I still think it’s a good wicket” after finishing the day unbeaten on 25.
“I back Pagey (MCG head curator Matt Page) in with what he’s done here over the last four or five years. I think the wicket has been really, really good,” he said to cricket.com.au.
“Even that Test wicket, I still think was a good wicket. I think we can maybe jump at shadows a little bit here and blame it all on the wicket. Generally, an MCG wicket when you (bat) on day one, if you score 200 runs, you’re happy.”
Neser played in both the Ashes Test and Thursday’s clash, revealing what he thought of the wicket.
“I don’t think it was doing as much,” Neser said.
“The (Shield) wicket actually looks half decent but it did do a bit when we were out there. It’s tricky one. I think we’ll judge how it pans out tomorrow.
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“It was obviously tricky (to bat on). It was doing a bit here and there. But then there were moments where you felt actually quite comfortable and you could score.”
Elsewhere, NSW posted 202 in their first innings against South Australia at the MCG, with former Blues seamer Nathan McAndrew ripping through his old teammates.
He took 4/23 off his 12 overs, with only opening batsmen Sam Konstas (44) managed more than 40 runs.
In reply, the Redbacks sit at 4/97 with Jason Sangha spearheading their batting innings, ending the day unbeaten on 39.
Meanwhile, Western Australia bowled Tasmania out for 239 at the WACA courtesy of a Cameron Gannon Barrage, taking 4/49.
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