MCC tour of Australia in 1974–75 with 83/5 before the MCC team rushed to their hotel to see the Rumble in the Jungle between Muhammad Ali and George Foreman. John Edrich led the team again against the 1973-74 Sheffield Shield champions Victoria under Ian Redpath, who won the toss and chose to bat. The MCG pitch proved to be as slow and flat at the Adelaide Oval and Victoria struggled to make 293/8 in 6½ hours. The wickets were shared around the English bowlers who struggled to dismiss the tailenders Ray Bright (53), Max Walker (23 not out) and Alan Thomson (11 not out), so in
George Foreman later charged that Angelo Dundee had loosened them, and this story is supported by Norman Mailer in the book "The Fight"), allowed Ali to lean back and away from Foreman's wild swings and then to clinch Foreman behind the head, forcing Foreman to expend much extra energy untangling himself. Ali also constantly pushed down on Foreman's neck but was never warned about doing so. To this day, it is unclear whether Ali's pre-fight talk of using speed and movement against Foreman had been just a diversionary tactic or whether his use of what became known as the "rope-a-dope" tactic was