Displayed inside a showcase on the elevated floor of the iconic Melbourne stadium is housed a neon pink ensemble donned by Robbie Williams. The show in front of 100,024 spectators was seen as a success.
Perhaps you don't appreciate the performer. Maybe you feel he is the greatest gift to music the world has ever seen. Alternatively, you may hold a balanced view, admitting that some tracks are excellent while others are poor.
The point being is that amusement can take many forms. You like what you like. There is not a single method to craft art or even five-day cricket.
The Peerless Spectrum of Test Cricket
Test cricket boasts peerless complexity. One struggles to think of another sport where the contest is so dictated by external factors.
The elements, the hour of play, the ball – the list is endless. Crucially is the wicket.
If the format is art, the wicket is the canvas on which the athletes create their art.
A Broken-Down Battle: The MCG Match
The recent Melbourne match between the two sides was an abstract version of cricket, the traditional sport dismantled and stuck back together in an unusual manner.
It must be stated this is not a endorsement of the surface which resulted in a victory and the second two-day Test of the Ashes battle.
Leaving a thick layer on the surface, resulting in a cascade of wickets tumbling in less than six sessions, is not a balanced duel between offense and defense.
A Varied History: The Nature of Test Cricket
But any idea this was a inferior show, one that should be marked with an asterisk as inauthentic, is mistaken.
The long game is a rich tapestry, over two thousand matches and still growing. On occasion, as witnessed recently, the ball behaves unpredictably for the pace bowlers. Sometimes, it grips and turns on a spinning track. Sometimes, the pitch is flat as a pancake, other times it spits like a cobra.
The close matches are all the more thrilling because of the patience committed elsewhere.
Problem Solving: The True Test
Certain variables are accepted more easily than others.
The argument in during the match was that the equilibrium was weighted unfairly towards the attack. That the best players were prevented from demonstrating their skill.
The format is about finding solutions – reading the situation and adapting appropriately. The best individual contributions were made by recognized batters. One side committed more errors than the other, and thus were defeated.
Pure Elation: The Supporters' View
Try telling the devotees who have endured a long drought that this was not entertaining.
Among the crowd of the MCG, thousands waved their flags and created an atmosphere, producing a party atmosphere in a stronghold of sport.
There was hope as the attack surged, impetus when the top order fought back, and unconditional love when the victory was confirmed.
Contrasting Examples: The Range of Test Matches
The Melbourne has previous experience with controversial surfaces. In the past, a Test there featured a pitch with the character of a a damp squib.
That match was a slog, with few wickets and slow play. This recent match and that drawn affair are diametrically opposed points of the scale – neither the standard, yet significance can be attached to each.
At this stage into the Ashes contest, it is the two-day matches that will live longest in the memory.
"This isn't the end of Test cricket at all," said a past champion. "The people who have been lucky enough to see these 48 hours have been treated to some real entertainment. Different entertainment."
Small Victories: Building for the Future
In the build-up to this Test, the skipper talked like a man carrying the heavy burden on his back.
The squad delivered for him, reinstating the smile to his face.
New faces stepped up with crucial roles. These are baby steps, hardly enough to guarantee long-term success, but a starting point to build on.
In the end, this Melbourne victory takes its place among other historic performances in dead rubbers.
As the supporters departed into a glorious Melbourne evening, the squad assembled on the outfield to commence their own enjoyment.
Celebrate the win, men. You've earned this one.
