In a showcase on the elevated floor of the Melbourne Cricket Ground sits a vibrant pink suit performed in by Robbie Williams. His concert in front of 100,024 fans was seen as a major hit.
It's possible you like Robbie Williams. You might think he is the greatest gift to music the world has ever seen. You might take a balanced view, conceding that some hits are belting while others are terrible.
The key argument is that entertainment can be delivered diversely. You like what you like. There is not a single method to create art or even the longest format.
The Peerless Spectrum of The Test Format
Test cricket boasts peerless complexity. It's difficult to think of another sport where the outcome is so reliant upon conditions.
The weather, the hour of play, the red ball – the variables are numerous. Crucially is the wicket.
If the long game is an artistic pursuit, the pitch is the blank slate on which the players paint their masterpiece.
A Broken-Down Battle: The Fourth Test
The fourth Ashes Test between Australia and England was an abstract version of cricket, the great game broken apart and reconstructed in a bizarre shape.
Let's be clear, this isn't a justification of the surface which resulted in a triumph and the second two-day Test of the Ashes battle.
Allowing excessive grass on the wicket, resulting in a cascade of wickets being taken in less than two days, is not a balanced duel between bat and ball.
A Rich Tapestry: The Core of Test Cricket
But any notion this was a inferior show, one that should be qualified as illegitimate, is wide of the mark.
The long game is a varied portfolio, over two thousand matches and still growing. At times, as seen at the MCG, the cricket ball does all sorts for the seamers. Sometimes, it turns square on a spinning track. At other venues, the pitch is dead, other times it explodes.
The exciting finishes are all the more thrilling because of the time made elsewhere.
Adaptation: The True Test
Certain variables are tolerated more freely than others.
The debate in at the MCG was that the contest was skewed excessively towards the bowlers. That the top batters were prevented from demonstrating their skill.
The format is about finding solutions – reading the wicket and responding effectively. The best individual contributions were made by world-class players. One team committed more errors than the other, and thus ended up second best.
Sheer Celebration: The Supporters' View
Go and inform the devotees who have suffered years of defeat that this wasn't compelling.
In a corner of the ground, thousands celebrated and created an atmosphere, generating a party atmosphere in a heartland of national pride.
There was belief as the fielding side excelled, impetus when batters fought back, and unconditional love when the result was achieved.
Contrasting Examples: The Variety of Test Matches
The venue has a history with pitch problems. Eight years ago, a game there featured a strip with all the life of a a damp squib.
That fixture was a grind, with limited drama and endless boredom. The two-day game and that previous match are polar opposites of the range – both are not ideal, yet historical weight can be ascribed to each.
At this stage into the ongoing battle, it is the shortest games that will be most remembered in the history books.
"This isn't the end of Test cricket at all," observed a veteran. "The people who have been privileged to see these short time have been experienced some fantastic sport. An unusual spectacle."
Small Victories: A Glimmer of Hope
In the lead-in to this Test, the captain talked like a man carrying the weight of the world on his shoulders.
The players delivered for him, reinstating the joy to his persona.
New faces performed with key contributions. These are small positives, not nearly enough to secure long-term success, but a foundation to use as a platform.
At the very least, this MCG win joins other notable performances in meaningless games.
As the fans left into a glorious Melbourne evening, the squad congregated on the field to begin their own festivities.
Celebrate the win, boys. It's well deserved.
