The fourth Test of the ongoing Ashes 2025-26 at the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG) got over in just two days, and it has got everyone talking for all the wrong reasons.
Ben Stokes and Steve Smith admitted that Test matches, especially the Boxing Day Test, should not end like this.
Ben Stokes, Steve Smith criticize ‘terrible’ MCG pitch after two-day Ashes Test
In a rare moment of agreement between Ashes rivals, England captain Ben Stokes and Australia’s stand-in captain Steve Smith have issued sharp criticism of the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG) pitch after the fourth Ashes Test ended in just two days.
It was the shortest Ashes match in more than 90 years, and “it’s not good enough,” Stokes said bluntly, with Smith saying the surface was “terrible” for Test cricket.
Also read: “It was a bit of an unfair tackle” – England captain criticizes MCG pitch after Boxing Day collapse
The MCG pitch surprised both the teams. There was about 10 mm of grass on the surface, making it extremely difficult to bat from the start. The ball went out of the seam quickly and the batsmen on both sides had to struggle to stay on the crease. In total, 36 wickets fell in just six sessions, and the highest score by any batsman in the match was Travis Head’s 46.
Boxing Day Test disaster: 36 wickets in two days
Statistics tell a shocking story:
– First day: 20 wickets fell, Australia scored 152 runs and England collapsed for 110 runs.
– Day 2: 16 more wickets fell in England’s chase of 175 in what the players called a “minefield”.
– Highest score: 46 runs by Travis Head, no batsman could reach half-century
– Total overs: 142
– Duration: less than 48 hours
‘If it had happened anywhere else, it would have been hell’ – Ben Stokes
Ben Stokes minced no words when assessing the MCG pitch that saw his England cricket team seal a dramatic four-wicket win, their first Ashes win in Australia in 15 years.
Ben Stokes told Test Match Special: “Not the best. 36 wickets in less than two days and not having a total over 200, I think you can read too much into it. If it was another situation somewhere else and that happened, you would probably have got a pasting.”
England all-rounder Ben Stokes indirectly referenced the ongoing criticism over turning pitches in Asia. He said, “I’m pretty sure if he was anywhere else in the world, there would be hell.”
Also read: “Still haven’t thrown me out”: Steve Smith brutally humiliates Jofra Archer in public
Stokes also reiterated in the post-match press conference, “It’s not ideal, but when you go out there and face those conditions, you have to overcome them and deal with them. But to be honest, that’s not what you really want. You know, a Boxing Day Test match, you don’t want the game to be over in less than two days. It’s not the best thing for games that have to be played in five days, but we played a type of cricket that The work is completed.”
Steve Smith described MCG surface as favorable for bowlers
Steve Smith also reiterated the same point and said that the grass on the pitch helped the bowlers a lot and did not allow the batsmen to settle down at all. He openly stated that the pitch was too much in favor of the bowlers and felt that a better balance could have been achieved with a little less grass.
Smith said in the post-match press conference, “It was difficult. Nobody could really get into it. I think when you look at 36 wickets in two days, it’s probably too much. It was probably a bit more than they wanted. Maybe if we had reduced it by eight millimetres, it would have been about right.”
“If he were anywhere else in the world, you know, there would be hell.”
Captains share their opinion on the spicy MCG pitch #ash pic.twitter.com/XwhX3mexIB
– cricket.com.au (@cricketcomau) 27 December 2025
