Within a display cabinet on the third floor of the Melbourne Cricket Ground sits a vibrant pink suit performed in by the entertainer. The concert in front of 100,024 fans was seen as a success.
You might not appreciate Robbie Williams. Maybe you feel he is the greatest gift to music the world has ever seen. You might take a balanced view, conceding that some songs are excellent while others are poor.
The central idea is that entertainment can take many forms. Preferences differ. There is no one way to produce music or even Test cricket.
The Peerless Spectrum of The Test Format
The traditional format boasts incomparable variety. It's difficult to think of another sport where the contest is so reliant upon the environment.
The weather, the time of day, the cricket ball – the list is endless. Most important is the wicket.
If the long game is a form of art, the pitch is the blank slate on which the players create their art.
A Broken-Down Battle: The Fourth Test
The Boxing Day fixture between the old rivals was Test cricket cubism, the established format dismantled and reassembled in a bizarre shape.
Let's be clear, this isn't a endorsement of the surface which yielded a win and the another short match of the Ashes battle.
Leaving excessive grass on the wicket, causing 36 wickets tumbling in less than two days, is not a balanced duel between batter and bowler.
A Diverse Legacy: The Nature of Test Cricket
But any idea this was a lesser event, one that should be qualified as not a proper Test, is wide of the mark.
The long game is a varied portfolio, 2,615 parts and ongoing. Sometimes, like in Melbourne, the ball moves excessively for the seamers. Sometimes, it grips and turns on a dry surface. Sometimes, the pitch is flat as a pancake, other times it explodes.
The thrillers are all the more thrilling owing to the time devoted in other matches.
Problem Solving: The True Test
Specific conditions are accepted more freely than others.
The debate in Melbourne was that the equilibrium was tipped too far towards the attack. That the top batters were hindered from demonstrating their skill.
Test cricket is about finding solutions – assessing the wicket and adjusting effectively. The best individual contributions were made by recognized batters. One side made more mistakes than the other, and thus ended up second best.
Pure Elation: The Fan Perspective
Attempt to convince the fans who have endured 18 winless matches that this wasn't compelling.
In a corner of the stadium, thousands waved their flags and created an atmosphere, fostering a festive mood in a stronghold of Australian cricket.
There was belief as the attack surged, momentum when the top order fought back, and unconditional love when the win was achieved.
Polar Opposites: The Variety of Test Matches
The Melbourne has a history with controversial surfaces. Eight years ago, a Test there featured a pitch with all the life of a a damp squib.
That contest was a slog, with limited drama and endless boredom. This recent match and that previous match are polar opposites of the range – both are not perfect, yet historical weight can be ascribed to both.
Deep into the series into the current series, it is the quick finishes that will live longest in the collective consciousness.
"This isn't the end of Test cricket at all," commented a past champion. "Fans who have been privileged to see these two days have been experienced some genuine drama. Different entertainment."
Baby Steps: Looking Ahead
In the build-up to this match, the leader talked like a man carrying the heavy burden on his mind.
The team responded for him, bringing back the smile to his face.
Emerging talents delivered with crucial roles. These are baby steps, hardly enough to ensure long-term success, but something to develop from.
Ultimately, this MCG win is added to other memorable performances in similar circumstances.
As the fans slipped away into a glorious Melbourne evening, the squad congregated on the turf to start their own enjoyment.
Enjoy the drink, men. You've earned this one.
