Displayed inside a display cabinet on the upper level of the Melbourne Cricket Ground sits a vibrant pink outfit donned by Robbie Williams. His show in front of 100,024 fans was hailed as a triumph.
It's possible you appreciate Robbie Williams. Perhaps you believe he is the greatest gift to music known to man. Alternatively, you may hold a balanced view, acknowledging that some tracks are excellent while others are awful.
The central idea is that entertainment can take many forms. Preferences differ. There is no one way to produce art or even five-day cricket.
The Unrivalled Depth of The Test Format
The five-day game boasts peerless complexity. It's difficult to think of another sport where the outcome is so dictated by conditions.
The climate, the session, the ball – the list is endless. Most important is the playing surface.
If the format is an artistic pursuit, the wicket is the blank slate on which the players paint their masterpiece.
A Test of Cubism: The MCG Match
The fourth Ashes Test between the two sides was the game deconstructed, the established format dismantled and reassembled in a bizarre shape.
It must be stated this is not a endorsement of the wicket which resulted in a triumph and the another short match of the contest.
Allowing 10mm of grass on the surface, causing a cascade of wickets being taken in less than six sessions, is not a fair contest between offense and defense.
A Diverse Legacy: The Essence 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.
Test cricket is a varied portfolio, over two thousand matches and counting. Sometimes, like in Melbourne, the ball behaves unpredictably for the pace bowlers. Other times, it spins sharply on a dry surface. At other venues, the pitch is dead, other times it bounces unevenly.
The thrillers are all the more thrilling because of the investment made in other matches.
Problem Solving: The Real Challenge
Specific conditions are accepted more easily than others.
The contention in during the match was that the contest was tipped too far towards the attack. That the top batters were hindered from playing their natural game.
Test cricket is about finding solutions – interpreting the conditions and responding appropriately. The top two individual scores were made by acknowledged players. One side was less disciplined than the other, and thus lost.
Sheer Celebration: The Supporters' View
Attempt to convince the fans who have suffered a long drought that this was not entertaining.
In one section of the stadium, countless fans celebrated and chanted, fostering a festive mood in a stronghold of national pride.
There was hope as the attack excelled, momentum when the top order responded, and rapturous celebration when the victory was achieved.
Extreme Ends: The Range of Test Matches
The MCG has a history with controversial surfaces. In the past, a game there featured a pitch with the character of a pulled Christmas cracker.
That match was a slog, with minimal action and endless boredom. The two-day game and that slow Test are polar opposites of the scale – neither perfect, yet historical weight can be attached to both.
Deep into the series into the Ashes contest, it is the two-day matches that will remain iconic in the memory.
"It's not the death of Test cricket at all," said a former player. "Spectators who have been lucky enough to see these short time have been experienced some real entertainment. A unique show."
Baby Steps: A Glimmer of Hope
In the lead-in to this Test, the captain spoke like a man carrying the weight of the world on his shoulders.
The players delivered for him, restoring the positive demeanor to his face.
New faces stepped up with vital performances. These are baby steps, certainly not enough to secure long-term success, but something to develop from.
Ultimately, this Melbourne victory is added to other historic performances in dead rubbers.
As the crowd slipped away into a stunning sunset, the squad congregated on the turf to begin their own enjoyment.
Savour the moment, boys. This victory was hard-fought.
