In a showcase on the third floor of the iconic Melbourne stadium sits a vibrant pink ensemble worn by Robbie Williams. His performance in front of 100,024 spectators was seen as a major hit.
You might not like Robbie Williams. Maybe you feel he is the finest offering to music known to man. Or you could adopt a reasonable stance, conceding that some hits are excellent while others are terrible.
The point being is that amusement can take many forms. Tastes vary. There is not a single method to produce literature or even the longest format.
The Unrivalled Depth of Test Cricket
The traditional format boasts incomparable variety. It's difficult to think of another sport where the playing is so reliant upon external factors.
The climate, the time of day, the ball – the list is endless. Most important is the playing surface.
If the long game is art, the strip is the blank slate on which the players paint their masterpiece.
A Broken-Down Battle: The MCG Match
The fourth Ashes Test between Australia and England was Test cricket cubism, the established format taken to pieces and stuck back together in an unusual manner.
It must be stated this is not a endorsement of the wicket which resulted in a triumph and the second two-day Test of the contest.
Allowing a thick layer on the pitch, resulting in a cascade of wickets being taken in less than six sessions, is not a fair contest between bat and ball.
A Diverse Legacy: The Core of Test Cricket
But any idea this was a inferior show, one that should be marked with an asterisk as illegitimate, is wide of the mark.
The format is a varied portfolio, over two thousand matches and ongoing. Sometimes, like in Melbourne, the cricket ball behaves unpredictably for the pace bowlers. Other times, it spins sharply on a spinning track. Sometimes, the pitch is dead, other times it explodes.
The exciting finishes are all the more thrilling because of the investment devoted during quieter periods.
Adaptation: The Real Challenge
Some factors are tolerated more readily than others.
The argument in at the MCG was that the balance was weighted unfairly towards the attack. That the skilled individuals were prevented from playing their natural game.
This level of cricket is about finding solutions – reading the wicket and adapting appropriately. The top two individual scores were made by world-class players. One line-up was less disciplined than the other, and thus were defeated.
Unbridled Joy: The Supporters' View
Attempt to convince the supporters who have suffered a long drought that this lacked spectacle.
In one section of the stadium, countless fans made noise and sang their songs, fostering a carnival vibe in a heartland of Australian cricket.
There was hope as the fielding side dominated, advantage when the top order fought back, and pure joy when the result was secured.
Contrasting Examples: The Range of Test Matches
The Melbourne has form with controversial surfaces. In the past, a Test there featured a strip with the character of a pulled Christmas cracker.
That contest was a slog, with minimal action and interminable tedium. The latest encounter and that drawn affair are extreme ends of the range – both are not perfect, yet value can be attached to them.
Four Tests into the current series, it is the shortest games that will be most remembered in the collective consciousness.
"This isn't the demise of Test cricket at all," observed a past champion. "Spectators who have been lucky enough to see these two days have been treated to some fantastic sport. Different entertainment."
Signs of Progress: Building for the Future
In the build-up to this Test, the skipper talked like a man carrying the heavy burden on his mind.
The squad delivered for him, reinstating the smile to his countenance.
Different players delivered with vital performances. These are small positives, certainly not enough to guarantee long-term success, but something to build on.
In the end, this Melbourne victory takes its place among other notable performances in dead rubbers.
As the supporters departed into a stunning sunset, the team congregated on the turf to begin their own enjoyment.
Enjoy the drink, boys. This victory was hard-fought.
