How many inches are there between friends?
England’s pace attack will collectively ponder, fret and chew off the festive bowling fat during this week’s journey from Adelaide to the Melbourne Cricket Ground.
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Between common sense and desperation, they settled on a formula: Fill the bowl a little fuller.
In the first three Tests of the Ashes series in Australia, the average length of England’s bowlers was 7.85m and for the most part, the Australian batsmen prevailed, with the hosts leading 3-0 in the five-match series.
England’s batting average was 6.89 million on day one in Melbourne, while Australia suffered a batting defeat when they were bowled out for 152 on Boxing Day.
When they hit the mark, those tiny margins worked on the “G.” England’s attack went to the area where the wickets actually lay.
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Australia’s players started to get into the game, the advantage started to show, England’s attack was with purpose, not just hope.
“England bowled better and they put the ball in good areas,” former England spinner Phil Tufnell said during a Test match special.
“It’s not rocket science. The pitch wasn’t full of seams, it was just a bit supportive – that’s why England won the toss and won a bowl.”
According to CricViz, England’s average length of delivery since Brendon McCullum was appointed coach is 6.89m, the second-longest they have bowled in any Test innings.
“Pitching was too short…to this day”
There was an element of luck from the beginning. Travis Head was dragged to Gus Atkinson and Jake Weatherald was strangled in the leg side by Josh Tongue.
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But then the latter’s wicket-stealing skills emerged and he earned Australia’s tenacious top order.
Marnus Labuschagne caught a full delivery from Tongue, angled to the stumps, edge-slip, and then the same bowler caught Steve Smith with a delivery, who hit him to wicket.
Michael Neser and Scott Boland followed Tongue in back-to-back deliveries – each bowled by a pinch-hitter and caught at second slip.
Statistics from CricViz show that Tongue has a record of 5-21 from 24 throws in the full field area (3-6m).
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In the ball-tracking era, only one English seamer (before Tongue today) had ever picked up five wickets from full length in a Test innings.
This was Stuart Broad’s memorable effort at Trent Bridge in 2015.
Tongue’s average speed dropped from 86.7 mph in Adelaide to 85.3 mph in Melbourne. This looks and feels more like Redditch Rhythm Fans than Redditch Rockets.
“It was a real example of pressure: good sustained pressure that Australia couldn’t get away from. England beat Australia in the hot Adelaide weather,” Tufnell added.
“You can get behind the bowling gear and slap them instead of getting cut through the gullies. Our bowling has been too short in all the series till today, but it was a good performance.
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“There was some overhead stuff too, some clouds, but they put it in good areas. I’m happy for Josh Tongue, he was the top choice, no question. It was a great bowling game.”
England’s bowling was full and by the time their bowlers put their feet on the glass – no matter how much they drank – it must have been a little more than half full.
Even if their break is shorter than they would have liked.