Winter Watch - Josh Tongue

 

29/12

How Josh Tongue became England’s man of the moment in Melbourne

Bowler’s electric display in fourth Ashes Test was no accident, with his tricky bowling action and match-hardened preparation proving raw pace isn’t everything

Simon Wilde The Times

 It will not have escaped the attention of many that England won the Test in Melbourne without their two fastest bowlers, Mark Wood and Jofra Archer, around whom their original strategy with the ball was built.

It is easy to oversimplify these things but raw pace was certainly not the answer at the MCG, which is not to say that Archer, in particular, would not have had a lot of success by virtue of his accuracy.

Looking back on the start of the series, it seems a shame England could not find room in their attack for Josh Tongue, who took the man-of-the-match award on Saturday for his figures across the two innings of seven for 89. Tongue is not high-pace but quick enough: he averaged 86.7mph in Adelaide and 85.3mph on the first day in Melbourne, when he claimed Test-best innings figures of five for 45.

England may have erred in leaving him out until the third Test but they at least deserve credit for recognising his qualities at the outset, because when they first chose him in 2023 his returns in County Championship cricket were unexceptional.

They liked him partly because the new iHawk system that harvests data from county cricket highlighted his ability to maintain speed across three spells a day. They also recognised the value of the unusual angles he created from a bowling arm that went beyond the perpendicular — his release points made right-handed batsmen feel as though their stumps were under constant threat and made them reluctant to leave the ball, which, Ben Duckett aside, is a fundamental ploy of almost every player looking to build a long innings.

ongue’s record against Steve Smith and Marnus Labuschagne, two very good players who like to leave the ball, illustrates this point well. He had dismissed Smith in every innings he had bowled to him until the second innings in Melbourne, when Smith carried his bat for 24. Before that Tongue had got him out in a championship match in 2023, both innings of the Ashes Test at Lord’s that same year, a Hundred game last summer and in the first innings at the MCG.

Tongue has also removed Labuschagne cheaply in the three most recent Australia innings of this Ashes series, on each occasion nicking off to the slips, for scores of 13, six and eight. Labuschagne’s petulance when he fell for the third time to a low catch to Joe Root, which was upheld by the third umpire, perhaps betrayed his frustration at the hold Tongue has over him.

After the Melbourne game, Smith said of Tongue: “He bowled nicely, and he bowled nicely last week as well [in Adelaide]. He gets above the perpendicular and shapes the ball back into you with that angle and draws you into play, similar to Scotty Boland… [they have] similar release points and angles. So yeah, good bowler. He’s done a pretty good job every time he’s had the opportunity to play for England.”

Tongue said that pitching the ball up was vital during the MCG Test: “That fuller length definitely helps, it helped me with my angle, that and making sure you’re hitting the pitch hard… you just had to make sure you were brave with your length.”

Right-arm fast bowlers whose arm goes beyond the vertical are dominating Test cricket these days. Jasprit Bumrah, Pat Cummins, Ben Stokes, Tongue and Boland operate in this fashion, which has so much going for it. It not only makes batsmen play at more balls, but their line of attack threatens the stumps in an era when DRS can help them secure an lbw verdict should the batsman miss.

At the same time, other methods of attack have lost potency. Batsmen have become adept at dealing with the threat of swing bowling by reading the position of the seam and the shiny side of the ball, and playing or leaving accordingly. Scrambled-seam balls homing in on the stumps have to be played.

Boland and Tongue have strike rates that are among the best in Test history, albeit neither has played an enormous amount (Boland has featured in 18 Tests, Tongue in eight), as do Bumrah and Cummins. That said, strike rates have come down sharply in recent years, reflecting the spicy nature of pitches and an almost frantic desire among many batsmen to hit out before they get out.

Tongue deserves his success because he has endured a lot of misfortune with unusual injuries, including Thoracic outlet syndrome in his right shoulder and a ruptured right pectoral muscle, both of which resulted in lengthy lay-offs.

Setbacks of this sort can erode a bowler’s confidence in his body and the Oval Test against India last summer was an important one in convincing Tongue that he could withstand heavy workloads after having to cover for the absence of Chris Woakes owing to a dislocated shoulder. Seven-over spells became de rigueur.

On the second day in Melbourne, with Gus Atkinson having broken down, Tongue stepped up again, bowling eight overs unchanged before lunch, then another three straight after, for the wickets of Labuschagne and Usman Khawaja.

Tongue arrived for this tour looking in great shape, leaner than before and perhaps more match-hardened than anyone else in the bowling group. Apart from four Tests last summer, he got through six championship matches for Nottinghamshire and contributed 31 wickets towards their title win at an average of 22. He also benefited from being sent to play in the pink-ball match against a Prime Minister’s XI at Canberra last month.

“He’s just got that natural wicket-taking ability that is so hard to come by,” Stokes said. “He’s been phenomenal in the two opportunities he’s been given this series.”

Best strike rates in Tests since 1900 (Eng-Aus only, min 40 wickets)

Scott Boland (Aus): 36.9 balls per wickets, 18 Tests, 78 wickets

Gus Atkinson (Eng): 39.1, 16 Tests, 69 wickets

Josh Tongue (Eng): 39.6, 8 Tests, 43 wickets

SF Barnes (Eng): 41.6, 27 Tests, 189 wickets

Brydon Carse (Eng): 45.2, 13 Tests, 55 wickets

Frank Tyson (Eng): 45.4, 17 Tests, 76 wickets

Pat Cummins (Aus): 45.6, 72 Tests, 315 wickets

Mitchell Starc (Aus): 46.1; 104 Tests, 428 wickets

Simon Jones (Eng): 47.8, 18 Tests, 59 wickets

28/12

4 from 4 for the Moores Stars

Daniel Sams 2-0-31-0 (for Thunder), Joe Clarke 60 (Stars)

27/12

Kyle Verreynne's Paarl Royals side were blown away in the SA IPL franchise for just 49 in 11.5 overs. Also in that side was Glamorgan's, Jersey-born Asa Tribe; so does that make him a Jersey Royal?

So England win one once the Ashes have already been lost...

26/12

The turnaround from previous seasons continues: three from three for Starcast Peter's boys, but Joe Clarke bags a duck.

Will Josh Tongue taking more wickets then Ben Duckett can face deliveries sell more Trent Bridge Test tickets?

Josh on a hat trick, but why he didn't bowl the last over of the day is somewhat unimaginative by the Stokes team.

24/12

No doubt bouyed by having possession of that jacket, Peter Moores' Stars side in the Big Bash has had the perfect start to a tournament this time around.

Pravda's winter summary so far

06/12

That word and a picture of that same player again

never going to be perfect - Root

Joe Pocklington last month

05/12

As the world circus rolls on to the International World League, again sited in the Gulf.

Hales and Stone feature in a win as does Moores junior for their respective franchises. Money for old rope for meaningless cricket.

27/11

It's in the rules, but...

Tom Moores retired out

Until there is a loss of delivery, I shall never agree with this option, as rare as it is taken. Spirit of the game and all that...

26/11

South Africa beat India again to clinch the series win. 

Farhan leads England u19 to another win in the West Indies.

23/11

A patient 45 today in the 2nd Test at Guwahati.

Some cheer at least from the West Indies where Farhan Ahmed with 3 wickets led England u19s to victory.

22/11

28(40) today for the diminutive Duckett.

Those disciples of the Moores-Cult won't like me pointing out that a Tom Moores duck caught the eye today after disappointment of the McCullum/Stokes Cults' ignominy earlier.

21/11

The less said about the England first innngs in the Ashes First Test the better, but the current ECB /McCullum mindset to Test cricket does have its supporters (they say).

Ben Duckett 21(20) 

20/11

The Abu Dhabi T10 slogfest has started where there is some Notts interest taking part.

Catching the eye, Tom Moores scored 39*(16) in victory for UAE Bulls whilst in another game Daniel Sams bowled a maiden over 2-1-12-1 as his side Royal Champs were still defeated.

Alex Hales scored 31(16) in defeat for Ajman Titans following up a 5(7) in a defeat on Wednesday.

Where did Joe Clarke go?

Farhan top scores in another defeat

17/11

Defeat for Captain Farhan

12/11

O'Neill 2/22 in the NSW second innings as Victoria win by a margin of 300 runs.

10/11

46 with the bat as Victoria bat first against a strong NSW bowling attack at the SCG

02/11

Whilst Ben Duckett appears to be well off the pace, continuing to show no sign of having been rested after being "jaded" over August, Kyle Verreynne returned to West Province as captain and bagged a golden duck in a T20 match against North West Dragons  - his first domestic game since the Championship win but he has also played two test matches in the period since as well.

16/10

Fergus O'Neill in the wickets in his second Sheffield Shield match of the 2025/26 season, against New South Wales, with a five-fer - 5/26

07/10

Sheffield Shield action and Fergus O'Neill was wicketless in Victoria's win over South Australia, but did contribute to the six wicket win with scores of 64 and 33*.