In a display cabinet on the elevated floor of the MCG rests a neon pink suit performed in by Robbie Williams. The concert in front of a massive crowd of attendees was hailed as a success.
Perhaps you don't appreciate Robbie Williams. Maybe you feel he is the greatest gift to music the world has ever seen. You might take a reasonable stance, conceding that some songs are fantastic while others are awful.
The central idea is that enjoyment can take many forms. You like what you like. There is no one way to create art or even five-day cricket.
The Incomparable Variety of The Test Format
The five-day game boasts unrivalled depth. It is hard to think of another sport where the contest is so dictated by external factors.
The weather, the session, the cricket ball – the factors are countless. Most important is the wicket.
If Test cricket is an artistic pursuit, the strip is the blank slate on which the athletes craft their legacy.
An Abstract Contest: The Melbourne Spectacle
The fourth Ashes Test between the two sides was Test cricket cubism, the traditional sport taken to pieces and stuck back together in an unusual manner.
Let's be clear, this isn't a defence of the wicket which yielded a victory and the another sub-three-day finish of the Ashes battle.
Allowing a thick layer on the surface, resulting in numerous dismissals tumbling in less than a brief period, is not a fair contest between bat and ball.
A Diverse Legacy: The Nature of Test Cricket
But any suggestion this was a inferior show, one that should be qualified as inauthentic, is wide of the mark.
Test cricket is a diverse canvas, a long history and counting. Sometimes, as witnessed recently, the cricket ball behaves unpredictably for the fast men. Other times, it turns square on a dry surface. Sometimes, the pitch is dead, other times it explodes.
The exciting finishes are particularly captivating owing to the patience devoted in other matches.
Problem Solving: The True Test
Certain variables are tolerated more freely than others.
The contention in at the MCG was that the contest was tipped too far towards the attack. That the skilled individuals were unable from playing their natural game.
This level of cricket is about finding solutions – assessing the conditions and responding appropriately. The top two individual innings were made by world-class batters. One line-up committed more errors than the other, and thus were defeated.
Sheer Celebration: The Fan Perspective
Attempt to convince the devotees who have endured 18 winless matches that this lacked spectacle.
Among the crowd of the stadium, countless fans made noise and sang their songs, fostering a party atmosphere in a stronghold of sport.
There was belief as the fielding side dominated, advantage when batters responded, and unconditional love when the win was secured.
Contrasting Examples: The Spectrum of Test Matches
The MCG has a history with pitch problems. In the past, a Test there featured a pitch with the excitement of a a damp squib.
That fixture was a slog, with limited drama and endless boredom. The two-day game and that previous match are polar opposites of the range – neither ideal, yet value can be found in them.
At this stage into the current series, it is the quick finishes that will live longest in the history books.
"It's not the end of the format at all," commented a veteran. "Fans who have been privileged to see these short time have been experienced some real entertainment. A unique show."
Signs of Progress: Building for the Future
In the build-up to this Test, the captain talked like a man carrying the heavy burden on his mind.
The players responded for him, bringing back the joy to his persona.
Different players delivered with vital performances. These are incremental gains, certainly not enough to guarantee long-term stability, but a starting point to develop from.
At the very least, this MCG win takes its place among other memorable performances in dead rubbers.
As the crowd departed into a stunning sunset, the team gathered on the field to start their own celebrations.
Savour the moment, lads. It's well deserved.
