Within a showcase on the elevated floor of the iconic Melbourne stadium sits a electric pink ensemble performed in by Robbie Williams. His performance in front of a hundred thousand fans was considered a success.
Perhaps you don't enjoy the performer. Perhaps you believe he is the ultimate present to music in history. Alternatively, you may hold a balanced view, acknowledging that some tracks are excellent while others are terrible.
The key argument is that entertainment can take many forms. Tastes vary. There is no one way to create music or even the longest format.
The Peerless Spectrum of The Long Game
Test cricket boasts peerless complexity. It's difficult to think of another sport where the outcome is so dictated by external factors.
The elements, the time of day, the ball – the variables are numerous. Above all is the playing surface.
If the long game is art, the strip is the blank slate on which the cricketers craft their legacy.
A Test of Cubism: The MCG Match
The recent Melbourne match between the two sides was Test cricket cubism, the great game dismantled and stuck back together in an unusual manner.
This is not a defence of the wicket which resulted in a victory and the another sub-three-day finish of the series.
Allowing excessive grass on the wicket, resulting in 36 wickets falling in less than a brief period, is not a balanced duel between offense and defense.
A Rich Tapestry: The Nature of Test Cricket
But any notion this was a diminished spectacle, one that should be marked with an asterisk as inauthentic, is incorrect.
Test cricket is a diverse canvas, 2,615 parts and still growing. Sometimes, like in Melbourne, the cricket ball does all sorts for the pace bowlers. Other times, it grips and turns on a dust bowl. At other venues, the pitch is dead, other times it bounces unevenly.
The thrillers are particularly captivating owing to the investment devoted in other matches.
Problem Solving: The Real Challenge
Certain variables are accepted more freely than others.
The argument in Melbourne was that the balance was tipped too far towards the attack. That the best players were unable from demonstrating their skill.
This level of cricket is about problem solving – reading the wicket and adapting effectively. The top two individual scores were made by acknowledged batters. One team committed more errors than the other, and thus ended up second best.
Sheer Celebration: The Supporters' View
Try telling the devotees who have endured years of defeat that this wasn't compelling.
Among the crowd of the MCG, thousands celebrated and chanted, fostering a party atmosphere in a heartland of national pride.
There was optimism as the bowlers dominated, advantage when players responded, and unconditional love when the win was confirmed.
Contrasting Examples: The Spectrum of Test Matches
The MCG has form with controversial surfaces. In the past, a match there featured a pitch with the character of a a non-event.
That contest was a grind, with limited drama and slow play. The latest encounter and that drawn affair are extreme ends of the range – one is not more ideal, yet value can be found in both.
Deep into the series into the current series, it is the quick finishes that will remain iconic in the collective consciousness.
"This isn't the death of Test cricket at all," commented a veteran. "Fans who have been lucky enough to see these 48 hours have been treated to some real entertainment. Different entertainment."
Signs of Progress: Looking Ahead
In the lead-in to this Test, the leader talked like a man carrying the weight of the world on his shoulders.
The players delivered for him, restoring the smile to his countenance.
Different players performed with key contributions. These are small positives, certainly not enough to ensure long-term futures, but something to use as a platform.
Ultimately, this triumph takes its place among other notable performances in similar circumstances.
As the supporters slipped away into a beautiful night, the team gathered on the field to start their own enjoyment.
Enjoy the drink, men. It's well deserved.
