England’s Boxing Day breakthrough ends 15-year drought at the MCG
Australia vs England, 4th Test, Melbourne – Match Analysis
England finally broke a 15-year winless run in Australia with a four-wicket victory over Australia in the fourth Ashes Test at the Melbourne Cricket Ground, completing a breathless two-day contest that felt more like a sprint than a traditional Test match. With both sides bowled out cheaply across four innings and 36 wickets falling inside two days, this was cricket played at breakneck speed, but the result carried genuine significance for a touring side that had been battered earlier in the series.
Australia’s totals of 152 and 132 left England chasing a modest 175, yet on a pitch described by both captains as heavily bowler-friendly, nothing was straightforward. England’s response — 110 in their first innings and 178 for 6 in the second — showed far greater adaptability than earlier in the tour, anchored by a series of nerveless but calculated contributions under relentless pressure.
Match context and what the result means
Australia arrived at Melbourne with the Ashes already secured, leading the series 3-1, but England’s ability to snatch a win here ensured that the tour did not peter out into irrelevance. It was England’s first Test victory in Australia since 2010, achieved in a match lasting just 852 balls, the second two-day Test of a bizarre series.
For the World Test Championship, England collected 12 points, while Australia came away empty-handed. More importantly, England finally had something tangible to take to Sydney, as Ben Stokes admitted this had been a “tough tour up to now” and that the side needed a moment like this to restore belief.
Team selections and their implications
England’s bowling unit was reshaped by circumstances but delivered a performance that underlined the depth within the squad. Josh Tongue was entrusted with a significant role and repaid that faith emphatically, finishing the match with 5/45 and 2/44 to earn the Player of the Match award. Gus Atkinson and Brydon Carse provided disciplined support, while Stokes chipped in with vital wickets.
Australia’s line-up was built around their pace battery, yet the batting order struggled to find any rhythm. Michael Neser’s 35 in the first innings was the lone note of resistance in a collapse that saw senior players depart cheaply. Steve Smith, leading the side, later conceded that “50 or 60 more” in either innings might have altered the outcome.
A pitch that dictated every decision
From the first session, it was clear the surface was hostile. Seam movement, variable bounce and pace off the wicket made batting a lottery, especially early in each innings. Smith called it “a bit too much in favour of the bowlers”, pointing to the extraordinary tally of 36 wickets in two days.
England embraced this reality better than Australia. They bowled full, attacking lengths, forcing batters to play at the ball, while in the chase they accepted that fluency would be fleeting and that controlled aggression was the only viable route.
Tongue’s moment on the grandest stage
Josh Tongue’s spell on Boxing Day was the pivotal chapter of the match. Removing five Australian batters in the first innings, he exposed a fragile top order and ensured the hosts never settled. His dismissal of Steven Smith was particularly telling, the captain undone in conditions that rewarded bravery but punished hesitation.
Tongue later spoke of having come through difficult times with his body, making his five-wicket haul at a packed MCG all the more poignant. It was the kind of performance that changes a tour narrative, both for the player and the team.
England’s chase: calm amid the chaos
Chasing 175 on this pitch was never going to be routine, yet England’s top order showed a clarity of intent that had been missing earlier in the series. Ben Duckett’s 34 at the top set the tone, his willingness to score off anything loose preventing Australia from settling into relentless accuracy.
Zak Crawley’s 37 added a stabilising presence, but it was Jacob Bethell who shaped the middle of the chase. His 40 from 46 balls was a study in situational awareness — exploiting field placements, ramping when the keeper stood up, and forcing the bowlers to rethink their lengths.
Joe Root’s 15 was not his most fluent effort, yet his calm at the crease steadied a wobble, and when Bethell fell, Harry Brook ensured the finish did not drift. Brook’s unbeaten 18 included the leg-bye that sealed the win, a moment that summed up a match in which every run felt hard-earned.
Australia’s missed chances
For all the talk of the pitch, Australia had opportunities to tilt the chase in their favour. Mitchell Starc and Jhye Richardson both generated movement, but lapses — including no-balls and marginal decisions overturned on review — allowed England to keep the scoreboard ticking.
Smith later reflected that England’s aggression “softened our ball a bit”, a subtle but telling point: the tourists’ refusal to be pinned down prevented the kind of sustained pressure Australia had exerted in previous Tests.
Key match-ups that defined the contest
- Josh Tongue vs Australia’s top order: Tongue’s ability to find movement at pace dismantled Smith, Labuschagne and Weatherald early, placing Australia permanently on the back foot.
- Starc vs Duckett: Starc eventually dismissed Duckett with a perfect yorker, but the opener’s early boundaries blunted Australia’s initial momentum.
- Boland vs Bethell: Scott Boland removed Bethell just as England appeared to be cruising, yet by then the damage had been done.
- Richardson vs Brook: The final exchanges, with Brook holding his nerve against Richardson, embodied England’s new-found composure.
What this win says about England
Stokes spoke of bravery and courage, and those were not empty words. On a surface that demanded precision, England chose to impose themselves rather than retreat into survival mode. They did not always execute cleanly, but the clarity of their approach — particularly in the chase — marked a shift from earlier Tests where collapses had felt inevitable.
The sight of the Barmy Army celebrating at the MCG, many remembering the last win here in 2010, added emotional weight to a result that might otherwise have been dismissed as a late consolation.
Balanced closing outlook
This was not a perfect performance, nor does it erase the shortcomings that left England trailing in the series. Australia still hold the Ashes, and the questions around pitch preparation and the pace of these matches will rumble on. Yet for England, this win represents proof of concept: that their bowlers can exploit Australian conditions and that their batters can chase under pressure.
As the teams head to Sydney, the narrative has shifted. Australia remain dominant, but England finally have a foothold, and after 15 years of frustration on Australian soil, that alone makes this Boxing Day Test one to remember.
The hidden role of reviews in shaping the chase
One detail that will be lost on many casual observers is how influential the DRS interventions were in quietly tilting the match. Multiple lbw decisions were challenged during England’s fourth-innings pursuit, with several coming back as umpire’s call or being overturned. On a surface where survival often hinged on a single ball deviating late, those marginal calls were not just footnotes; they preserved partnerships at moments when Australia were starting to sense another collapse. In a match decided by four wickets on a treacherous pitch, the ability to manage those fine margins through timely reviews was a decisive, if largely invisible, component of England’s success.
One incident that continues to provoke debate is the dismissal of Marnus Labuschagne in Australia’s second innings, when he was given caught by Root off Josh Tongue despite the replays suggesting the ball may have brushed the turf before settling in the slip fielder’s hands. The third umpire was satisfied that there were fingers underneath the ball, but the television angles were inconclusive at best, and to the naked eye it appeared the ball might have grounded fractionally before being controlled. It was a marginal call in a match full of fine margins, yet it came at a critical moment in Australia’s collapse and will leave many viewers feeling the benefit of the doubt did not go the hosts’ way on this occasion.