In a glass case on the elevated floor of the MCG is housed a electric pink ensemble worn by Robbie Williams. His concert in front of a hundred thousand fans was seen as a major hit.
It's possible you appreciate the performer. You might think he is the finest offering to music known to man. You might take a balanced view, admitting that some hits are fantastic while others are terrible.
The central idea is that amusement can manifest in countless ways. You like what you like. There is no one way to craft art or even the longest format.
The Unrivalled Depth of Test Cricket
The traditional format boasts incomparable variety. One struggles to think of another sport where the playing is so dictated by conditions.
The climate, the session, the ball – the variables are numerous. Above all is the wicket.
If Test cricket is an artistic pursuit, the strip is the canvas on which the cricketers craft their legacy.
A Broken-Down Battle: The Fourth Test
The recent Melbourne match between the two sides was Test cricket cubism, the established format broken apart and reconstructed in a bizarre shape.
It must be stated this is not a justification of the pitch which yielded a win and the second two-day Test of the Ashes battle.
Having excessive grass on the pitch, resulting in 36 wickets being taken in less than six sessions, is not a fair contest between batter and bowler.
A Rich Tapestry: The Nature of Test Cricket
But any notion this was a inferior show, one that should be marked with an asterisk as not a proper Test, is mistaken.
Test cricket is a diverse canvas, over two thousand matches and ongoing. Sometimes, as seen at the MCG, the ball behaves unpredictably for the fast men. Sometimes, it turns square on a dry surface. Sometimes, the pitch is unresponsive, other times it spits like a cobra.
The close matches are even more exciting due to the time committed during quieter periods.
Problem Solving: The True Test
Some factors are tolerated more easily than others.
The contention in during the match was that the contest was skewed excessively towards the attack. That the best players were unable from playing their natural game.
The format is about problem solving – interpreting the wicket and adapting accordingly. The top two individual scores were made by acknowledged stars. One side made more mistakes than the other, and thus were defeated.
Unbridled Joy: For Those Who Waited
Try telling the fans who have endured 18 winless matches that this wasn't compelling.
In one section of the MCG, countless fans celebrated and chanted, fostering a party atmosphere in a stronghold of Australian cricket.
There was optimism as the attack excelled, advantage when players responded, and pure joy when the win was achieved.
Polar Opposites: The Range of Test Matches
The Melbourne has previous experience with controversial surfaces. In the past, a Test there featured a pitch with the excitement of a a damp squib.
That fixture was a grind, with minimal action and slow play. The latest encounter and that drawn affair are diametrically opposed points of the range – neither perfect, yet significance can be attached to both.
Four Tests into the current series, it is the quick finishes that will live longest in the collective consciousness.
"Far from being the death of the format at all," said a former player. "Spectators who have been privileged to see these 48 hours have been treated to some real entertainment. An unusual spectacle."
Small Victories: Building for the Future
In the build-up to this match, the skipper spoke like a man carrying the heavy burden on his mind.
The team delivered for him, restoring the smile to his persona.
Different players delivered with key contributions. These are baby steps, hardly enough to guarantee long-term success, but a foundation to build on.
At the very least, this MCG win takes its place among other notable performances in dead rubbers.
As the supporters left into a glorious Melbourne evening, the squad congregated on the field to start their own enjoyment.
Enjoy the drink, men. You've earned this one.
