Australia’s vaunted pace trio of Pat Cummins, Mitchell Starc and Josh Hazlewood are on the verge of running down some of the great West Indies pace attacks of yesteryear, as MCG ground staff aim to produce another pitch with life in it for the quicks ahead of Boxing Day.
And off-spinner Nathan Lyon is on the cusp of another major landmark just days after his 500 Test-wicket milestone.
The big three: Pat Cummins, Josh Hazlewood and Mitchell Starc.Credit: Getty Images
Cummins and his fellow quicks need 14 wickets – the equivalent of a big Boxing Day Test – to pass the fearsome Windies combination of Joel Garner, Michael Holding and Malcolm Marshall, who terrorised batters around the world for much of the 1980s.
Barring injury, the Australian triumvirate, with 318 victims from 26 Tests together, should pass another intimidating pace battalion in Marshall, Curtly Ambrose and Courtney Walsh (338 wickets together) either in Sydney against Pakistan or during the two-match series against the West Indies.
The impending achievements underline how blessed Australia have been to have three fast bowlers tipped to become future hall of famers playing in the same generation.
The country has often had two high-class pace pairings – as in Dennis Lillee and Jeff Thomson, Craig McDermott and Merv Hughes, and Glenn McGrath and Jason Gillespie – but rarely three of the quality of Cummins, Hazlewood and Starc.
The mark of 357 for an Australia pace threesome – held by Ray Lindwall, Bill Johnston and Keith Miller – is also within sight this summer.
That the current quicks have been complemented by off-spin great Lyon, the eighth man to reach 500 Test wickets, means this could be one of the greatest attacks Australia has ever had.
According to respected statistician Ric Finlay, the incumbent Australian attack, with 390 wickets in the 24 Tests they have played together, are 26 short of topping the 415 taken by Stuart Broad, James Anderson, Ben Stokes and Moeen Ali in matches where all four have bowled.
That would make Australia’s first choice attack the most prolific of the 66,787 bowling quartets to have played Test cricket, according to Finlay.
Australia and Pakistan are likely to be greeted by another pitch offering assistance to the bowlers when they clash in one of the most cherished sporting fixtures in world cricket.
Once the graveyard for bowlers, the MCG pitch has been transformed since the bore draw in 2017 when Alastair Cook, with 244 not out, made the highest score by a visiting batter at the venue.
Under the close eye of head curator Matt Page, staff at the MCG have installed new drop-in pitches in recent years, turning the once placid track into a lively deck offering plenty of encouragement to the bowlers while also giving batters the chance to be rewarded for their application.
Last year’s strip was awarded the top rating of “very good” after a game where David Warner and Alex Carey scored tons, in Warner’s case a double, the pacemen shone early and Lyon was a major threat on day four.
“It’s no secret, we had issues many years ago and we’ve addressed those issues,” MCC chief executive Stuart Fox said on SEN radio.
“We’ve been very consistent with the pitch now for about four years straight.
“Since that time, we’ve renovated a number of pitches and we’re also renovating at the moment.
“Matthew has come in and just wants to set a standard that is fair for everyone – a balance between bat and ball. The evidence is there, we’ve produced four pitches that have been fantastic.
“We’ve sped the game up a bit. You want to see bowlers doing really well but equally you want to see a batter try and get the hundred. We’ve had two Shield games before Christmas and the pitch has performed well.”
Fox said the MCG track would deteriorate differently to the spicy pitch in Perth, which made batting difficult on the third and fourth days to pace.
“We won’t get a pitch that cracks badly and opens up, we just haven’t got those characteristics,” Fox said. “It’s probably more important for us we get good seam movement on the first day. Again, a good team should be able to produce runs as well.”
