In a display cabinet on the elevated floor of the MCG rests a neon pink suit performed in by Robbie Williams. His show in front of a hundred thousand attendees was hailed as a major hit.
Perhaps you don't enjoy Robbie Williams. Maybe you feel he is the finest offering to music known to man. Or you could adopt a reasonable stance, admitting that some hits are belting while others are poor.
The central idea is that enjoyment can take many forms. Preferences differ. There is no one way to create art or even the longest format.
The Unrivalled Depth of The Long Game
The traditional format boasts unrivalled depth. It is hard to think of another sport where the contest is so dependent on conditions.
The climate, the time of day, the cricket ball – the list is endless. Most important is the pitch.
If Test cricket is a form of art, the wicket is the canvas on which the cricketers craft their legacy.
A Broken-Down Battle: The MCG Match
The Boxing Day fixture between the two sides was an abstract version of cricket, the traditional sport dismantled and reconstructed in a bizarre shape.
Let's be clear, this isn't a defence of the wicket which resulted in a triumph and the another short match of the Ashes battle.
Allowing a thick layer on the pitch, leading to numerous dismissals falling in less than a brief period, is not a fair contest between offense and defense.
A Diverse Legacy: The Essence of Test Cricket
But any notion this was a inferior show, one that should be qualified as illegitimate, is wide of the mark.
Test cricket is a varied portfolio, a long history and counting. At times, like in Melbourne, the cricket ball behaves unpredictably for the fast men. In contrast, it turns square on a dry surface. Sometimes, the pitch is dead, other times it spits like a cobra.
The exciting finishes are particularly captivating due to the investment committed elsewhere.
Adjustment: The True Test
Some factors are tolerated more readily than others.
The debate in Melbourne was that the balance was tipped too far towards the bowlers. That the top batters were unable from playing their natural game.
Test cricket is about problem solving – interpreting the situation and responding accordingly. The best individual scores were made by acknowledged players. One line-up made more mistakes than the other, and thus lost.
Unbridled Joy: For Those Who Waited
Attempt to convince the fans who have suffered a long drought that this lacked spectacle.
In a corner of the MCG, thousands made noise and chanted, producing a party atmosphere in a bastion of Australian cricket.
There was optimism as the attack excelled, advantage when the top order scored quickly, and pure joy when the win was achieved.
Extreme Ends: The Variety of Test Matches
The venue has a history with pitch problems. Previously, a game there featured a pitch with all the life of a a non-event.
That fixture was a marathon, with few wickets and slow play. The two-day game and that drawn affair are polar opposites of the range – neither ideal, yet value can be ascribed to them.
Four Tests into the ongoing battle, it is the quick finishes that will live longest in the memory.
"It's not the death of the format at all," observed a former player. "The people who have been privileged to see these two days have been experienced some real entertainment. A unique show."
Signs of Progress: Building for the Future
In the preparation to this Test, the skipper spoke like a man carrying the heavy burden on his back.
The players responded for him, restoring the positive demeanor to his face.
Emerging talents performed with crucial roles. These are small positives, not nearly enough to ensure long-term futures, but something to develop from.
In the end, this Melbourne victory is added to other notable performances in similar circumstances.
As the fans slipped away into a glorious Melbourne evening, the team gathered on the outfield to start their own celebrations.
Enjoy the drink, men. This victory was hard-fought.
