Displayed inside a display cabinet on the elevated floor of the iconic Melbourne stadium sits a electric pink ensemble worn by Robbie Williams. The performance in front of 100,024 attendees was considered a success.
It's possible you enjoy the performer. Perhaps you believe he is the ultimate present to music the world has ever seen. Or you could adopt a middle ground, acknowledging that some tracks are belting while others are awful.
The key argument is that amusement can take many forms. Tastes vary. There is not a single method to produce literature or even Test cricket.
The Incomparable Variety of The Test Format
The five-day game boasts incomparable variety. It is hard to think of another sport where the playing is so reliant upon conditions.
The climate, the time of day, the ball – the factors are countless. Crucially is the playing surface.
If Test cricket is an artistic pursuit, the pitch is the canvas on which the athletes paint their masterpiece.
An Abstract Contest: The Fourth Test
The Boxing Day fixture between Australia and England was Test cricket cubism, the great game dismantled and reconstructed in a bizarre shape.
This is not a defence of the pitch which yielded a win and the second two-day Test of the series.
Allowing a thick layer on the pitch, leading to 36 wickets tumbling in less than a brief period, is not an even battle between offense and defense.
A Rich Tapestry: The Essence of Test Cricket
But any idea this was a diminished spectacle, one that should be footnoted as inauthentic, is incorrect.
The long game is a rich tapestry, 2,615 parts and ongoing. Sometimes, as witnessed recently, the ball behaves unpredictably for the pace bowlers. Other times, it grips and turns on a dry surface. Sometimes, the pitch is dead, other times it bounces unevenly.
The close matches are even more exciting because of the patience devoted elsewhere.
Adaptation: The Real Challenge
Certain variables are accepted more freely than others.
The contention in at the MCG was that the equilibrium was tipped too far towards the bowlers. That the skilled individuals were hindered from showcasing their talents.
This level of cricket is about adapting to challenges – reading the wicket and responding appropriately. The best individual innings were made by acknowledged players. One side made more mistakes than the other, and thus lost.
Pure Elation: The Supporters' View
Go and inform the supporters who have suffered a long drought that this lacked spectacle.
In one section of the stadium, a sea of people celebrated and sang their songs, fostering a party atmosphere in a heartland of national pride.
There was belief as the bowlers excelled, impetus when players fought back, and unconditional love when the win was achieved.
Contrasting Examples: The Variety of Test Matches
The venue has a history with pitch problems. Eight years ago, a game there featured a wicket with the excitement of a a non-event.
That fixture was a marathon, with minimal action and endless boredom. The latest encounter and that previous match are extreme ends of the scale – one is not more the standard, yet significance can be found in them.
Four Tests into the ongoing battle, it is the two-day matches that will live longest in the history books.
"Far from being the death of Test cricket at all," observed a past champion. "Fans who have been fortunate to see these 48 hours have been given some fantastic sport. An unusual spectacle."
Signs of Progress: A Glimmer of Hope
In the preparation to this Test, the leader spoke like a man carrying the heavy burden on his shoulders.
The players delivered for him, bringing back the smile to his countenance.
New faces performed with crucial roles. These are small positives, hardly enough to secure long-term stability, but a foundation to build on.
At the very least, this Melbourne victory is added to other notable performances in meaningless games.
As the fans slipped away into a stunning sunset, the team assembled on the outfield to start their own enjoyment.
Enjoy the drink, lads. You've earned this one.
