As many as 20 wickets fell on the opening day of the Boxing Day Test between Australia and England at the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG).

Having secured the Ashes urn at the Adelaide Oval, the hosts were bowled out for 152 after being asked to bat first on a green wicket offering plenty of pace and movement for the bowlers. In reply, the Three Lions fared even worse and ended up conceding a handy 42-run lead.

The dramatic collapse on both sides sparked concern within Cricket Australia, with chief executive Todd Greenberg acknowledging that shortened Tests were bad for business.

Notably, 19 wickets tumbled on Day 1 of the Ashes opener at Perth. That match ended inside two days, costing Cricket Australia millions of dollars, and the Melbourne Test is also heading towards the same direction.

"I didn't sleep well last night, put it that way," Greenberg said on SEN radio after more than 94,000 packed into the MCG for Friday's first day.

"It was an amazing day of Test cricket, so for that record number of people who were here, boy, they've had an experience.

"But our challenge is to make sure we can continue those experiences day after day. That's the challenge for all of us."

The Melbourne surface was prepared with 10 millimetres of grass on the wicket, making it heavily favourable for the bowlers.

Greenberg made it clear that shorter Test matches was not in Cricket Australia's interest. "A simple phrase I'd use is short Tests are bad for business. I can't be much more blunt than that. So I would like to see a slightly broader balance between the bat and the ball."

A number of former cricketers have been critical of the MCG pitch with former England skipper Michael Vaughan terming it as "a joke".

"This is selling the game short," Vaughan added, while another ex-England captain Alastair Cook calling it "an unfair contest".

Australian curators are usually independent when it comes to preparing pitches, both from captains and Cricket Australia. However, Greenberg called for more interventionist approach.

"It's hard not to get more involved when you see the impact on the sport, especially commercially," he said.

"I'm not suggesting I'll go around talking to ground staff, but we do have to have a careful eye on what our expectations are over the course of a summer."

(With inputs from AFP)