Within a showcase on the elevated floor of the iconic Melbourne stadium rests a neon pink outfit donned by Robbie Williams. His performance in front of 100,024 fans was seen as a triumph.
Perhaps you don't like Robbie Williams. Maybe you feel he is the ultimate present to music known to man. Or you could adopt a middle ground, acknowledging that some tracks are fantastic while others are poor.
The key argument is that amusement can manifest in countless ways. You like what you like. There is no one way to craft music or even five-day cricket.
The Incomparable Variety of Test Cricket
The traditional format boasts incomparable variety. It is hard to think of another sport where the contest is so dictated by conditions.
The weather, the hour of play, the red ball – the factors are countless. Crucially is the wicket.
If Test cricket is a form of art, the wicket is the foundation on which the athletes craft their legacy.
An Abstract Contest: The Melbourne Spectacle
The recent Melbourne match between the old rivals was Test cricket cubism, the great game taken to pieces and reassembled in a bizarre shape.
Let's be clear, this isn't a justification of the surface which resulted in a win and the another sub-three-day finish of the Ashes battle.
Leaving excessive grass on the surface, leading to 36 wickets tumbling in less than two days, is not an even battle between offense and defense.
A Diverse Legacy: The Essence of Test Cricket
But any suggestion this was a lesser event, one that should be qualified as illegitimate, is wide of the mark.
The format is a rich tapestry, 2,615 parts and ongoing. At times, as seen at the MCG, the cricket ball behaves unpredictably for the fast men. Sometimes, it turns square on a dust bowl. Sometimes, the pitch is flat as a pancake, other times it explodes.
The close matches are particularly captivating owing to the patience committed in other matches.
Problem Solving: The Core Skill
Some factors are tolerated more freely than others.
The argument in at the MCG was that the equilibrium was weighted unfairly towards the attack. That the best players were unable from showcasing their talents.
Test cricket is about problem solving – interpreting the wicket and adapting appropriately. The two highest individual innings were made by world-class batters. One side made more mistakes than the other, and thus ended up second best.
Pure Elation: The Fan Perspective
Go and inform the devotees who have experienced a long drought that this was not entertaining.
In a corner of the ground, a sea of people made noise and sang their songs, producing a festive mood in a stronghold of Australian cricket.
There was optimism as the attack dominated, advantage when the top order responded, and rapturous celebration when the victory was achieved.
Extreme Ends: The Range of Test Matches
The venue has form with controversial surfaces. Eight years ago, a Test there featured a pitch with the character of a a non-event.
That fixture was a marathon, with few wickets and interminable tedium. This recent match and that slow Test are extreme ends of the scale – neither the standard, yet value can be attached to each.
Deep into the series into the Ashes contest, it is the two-day matches that will live longest in the collective consciousness.
"It's not the death of the format at all," observed a past champion. "Spectators who have been privileged to see these 48 hours have been treated to some real entertainment. A unique show."
Baby Steps: Looking Ahead
In the build-up to this match, the skipper talked like a man carrying the heavy burden on his mind.
The players protected him, bringing back the smile to his persona.
New faces stepped up with vital performances. These are incremental gains, not nearly enough to ensure long-term stability, but something to build on.
In the end, this MCG win is added to other notable performances in meaningless games.
As the crowd slipped away into a glorious Melbourne evening, the team assembled on the field to begin their own celebrations.
Celebrate the win, men. You've earned this one.
