Matt Page finds himself in shock after getting backing from boss as the fallout continues for a quickfire Boxing Day Test.
Matt Page in ‘state of shock’ as Head offers support after costly two-day finish.
After witnessing 20 wickets fall on the first day of the Boxing Day Test, MCG curator Matt Page stated he was in “a state of shock”. Travis Head offered his condolences to the ground crew for creating a seam-friendly field that led to the two-day finish.
After 36 wickets fell in 142 overs as England secured their first victory in Australia since January 2011 late on the second day, Page’s decision to leave 10mm of grass on the surface—informed by a hot prediction for the final three days of the match—came under intense scrutiny.
A similar field elsewhere in the world would unleash “hell,” according to England’s captain Ben Stokes, while Steven Smith questioned the choice to leave so much grass on, stating: “It probably offered just a little bit too much…” It might have been a hard wicket that was a little more even if you had taken it from 10 to 8 mm.
Page declared that he was “really disappointed” with the result and promised to make sure the MCG doesn’t result in another two-day finish.
“I was in a state of shock after the first day, to see everything that happened, 20 wickets in a day,” he said. “I’ve never been involved in a Test match like it, and hopefully never involved in a Test match like it again.
“Every year is different and the margins are very small, but in the back of your mind, you’re always trying to provide that contest. We’re about trying to provide captivating Test cricket, that balance between bat and ball going four or five days.
“We’ve produced a Test that’s been captivating, but it hasn’t gone long enough and we’ll take ownership of that. We’ll learn from it, we’ll grow, and we’ll make sure that we’ll get it right next year.”
Head, whose 46 in the second innings was the game’s highest score, expressed sympathy for Page and said that the ground crew had a “bloody tough” time. He also made analogies between the pitches used for the third Ashes Test in Adelaide, where both batting lineups performed poorly, and the MCG Test last year, where India lost by seven wickets in the penultimate session.
“Adelaide last week was probably one of the better batting wickets I’ve seen and I think we batted poorly on day one; England probably batted poorly [too],” he said. “When we went to bed on day one, everyone was talking 500-600, and if one team bats really, really well then goes big, we’d potentially see a draw in a batting-friendly game and go, ‘Oh, has it gone the other way?’
“You’re 1-2mm [of grass] away from it going the other way and seeing a more bowler-friendly week… You’ve got to take the good with the bat. Everyone’s trying to evolve and get better.
“You look at the Test match last year, and India batted poorly on the last day… It probably looks like it’s going to a draw, and then there’s question marks around: are we going too far the other way?
“I feel for him [Page]. It’s bloody tough. You leave 1-2mm on with high-quality bowling and you find yourself short, and you take 2-3mm off with high-quality batting and you leave yourself the other way.”
Stuart Fox, the chief executive of Melbourne Cricket Club (MCC), hinted that reckless batting was a contributing factor in the early finish, and said that he would stand by Page. “We brought Matt on eight years ago because he’s considered one of the best in the country – if not the best – and I still believe that and I always will,” Fox said.