Ashes Boxing Day Test: Day 2 Wrap - England's Insignificant Win
·27 min
1. Cricket Unfiltered covers the Boxing Day Test at the MCG after England’s four-wicket win ended the match on the second day.
2. Menas, the host, introduces himself as the founder of the show in 2013 and frames the result as the first England Test win in Australia in almost 15 years.
3. The episode asks whether England’s win mattered at all, because Menas repeatedly calls it a “dead rubber” and a “meaningless” result.
4. Australia’s second innings collapses to 132, with Scott Boland, Travis Head, Marnus Labuschagne, Cameron Green, and Steve Smith all discussed by name.
5. England then chase 175, and Menas says Ben Duckett and Zak Crawley gave them the start that “broke the back of the chase.”
6. A large part of the discussion centers on the pitch, which Menas calls a “disaster,” a “minefield,” and the “worst test pitch in Australian test cricket history.”
7. He cites Crickviz’s PitchViz rating of 8.9 out of 10 for batting difficulty and says it is the highest in Australia’s ball-tracking era since 2006.
8. Menas argues that the surface turned the Test into a crapshoot and gave England’s aggressive batting style a “puncher’s chance.”
9. He says Australia’s innings lasted 79.5 overs across both innings and notes that 36 wickets fell in two days.
10. He also points to commercial damage, saying refunds for days three and four could cost Cricket Australia close to $20 million.
11. Menas says Todd Greenberg told the ABC and SEN that Cricket Australia needs someone overseeing pitch preparation, because AFL and football stadiums now host cricket.
12. He argues that someone from Cricket Australia should intervene when a ground curator like Matt Page considers leaving extra grass on a pitch.
13. The first-session batting collapse is described in detail, with Head dismissed for 46 by Kas and Khawaja, Carey, Green, and Neser all falling quickly.
14. Menas says Steve Smith was Australia’s only batter who looked settled, finishing not out on 24 off 39.
15. He criticizes Cameron Green for “poking” at a ball from Stokes and says Joe Root held catches that did not bounce before reaching him.
16. England’s reply is described as aggressive from the start, with Duckett reaching 3,000 Test runs and Crawley and Bethell attacking the bowling.
17. Menas praises Duckett and Crawley’s quick scoring but says Australia erred by not starting Scott Boland with the new ball.
18. The episode is conversational and opinionated, with profanity, scorecard detail, and a running commentary style rather than a formal match report.
19. Fans of Ashes analysis, pitch debates, and cricket finance would get the most from it.
20. Listeners wanting neutral highlights or a calm match recap would probably skip it.
