MELBOURNE: Melbourne Cricket Ground head curator Matt Page said Sunday he had been in a “state of shock” watching the carnage unfold during the two-day fourth Ashes Test which has left Cricket Australia facing millions of dollars in revenue shortfall.
Page and his team left 10 millimetres of grass on the wicket, providing fast bowlers with excessive seam movement and bounce which made batting treacherous.
Thirty-six wickets tumbled in 142 overs, 20 on the first day, and the game was all over in the evening session of day two as England won by four wickets for their first victory in Australia since January 2011.
More than 90,000 fans were expected for day three and many more for days four and five.
But with ticket sales for those days having to be refunded, Cricket Australia faces another big financial hit after the Ashes series opener in Perth also ended within two days.
It is the first time the same series has had multiple two-day Tests for 129 years, dating back to the time when wickets were left uncovered to the weather.
“I was in a state of shock,” Page said.
“I’ve never been involved in a Test match like it and hopefully never involved in a Test match like that again.
“We know this hasn’t gone as we planned. We will look at what we need to do to improve.”
A year ago, the grass on the pitch had been shaved down to seven millimetres and produced a thrilling Test that went all the way to the final session on day five as Australia beat India.
Page said that cool and wet weather leading into this year’s Test combined with forecast heat on days three and four meant he had needed to take a different approach.
Pitch ‘a joke’
“We’re trying to balance that contest between bat and ball throughout, over the four or five days, to provide that captivating Test for all,” he said.
“We left it longer because we knew we were going to get (hot) weather at the back end that we knew we needed our grass (for).”
International Cricket Council referee Jeff Crowe is yet to deliver his assessment of the pitch, pondering whether to give it an “unsatisfactory” rating which would see the venue slapped with a demerit point.
England captain Ben Stokes and Australia counterpart Steve Smith were both critical of the surface, as were a string of former greats.
“Being brutally honest, that’s not really what you want,” Stokes said.
“Boxing Day Test match, you don’t want a game finishing in less than two days. Not ideal.”
Smith said: “It was tricky. No one could really get in. When you see 36 wickets across two days, that’s probably too much.”
Former England captain Michael Vaughan labelled the pitch “a joke”.
“This is selling the game short, the players, broadcasters and more importantly the fans,” he said.
Despite the controversy, MCG chief executive Stuart Fox backed Page and his ground staff to continue.
“We bought Matt on eight years ago because he’s considered one of the best in the country, if not the best,” Fox said.
“I still believe that, and I always will.
“You can see he’s disappointed. He carries that responsibility and my job as a leader is to support people.
“When you believe in your people, you get behind them and support them and I know he’ll respond.”
