MCG pitch rated 'unsatisfactory' after chaotic Ashes test

The Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG) pitch for the Boxing Day test between Australia and England has been given an “unsatisfactory” rating after 20 wickets fell in the first three sessions and the match was wrapped up inside two days.

England won the low-scoring fourth Ashes test by four wickets on a minefield of a pitch, with the premature finish leaving Cricket Australia (CA) millions of dollars out of pocket.

“The MCG pitch was too much in favour of the bowlers,” match referee Jeff Crowe said in a statement issued by the governing International Cricket Council (ICC) on Monday.

“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.”

The MCG’s demerit point will stand for the next five years. A venue accruing six demerit points in a five-year period leads to a one-year ban on hosting an international cricket match.

Curator Matt Page was left in a “state of shock” at the breakneck pace of the match on a greentop where MCG staff had left 10 millimetres of grass – three mm taller than last year’s Boxing Day test.

CA Chief of Cricket James Allsopp said the pitch did not provide  the MCG’s customary  balance  between bat and ball but was confident the issue would not be repeated.

“We’re  confident they will  deliver  first-rate surfaces  for next year’s Boxing Day test against New Zealand and the  hugely  anticipated  150th  anniversary test against England in  March  2027,” he added.