In a glass case on the elevated floor of the MCG rests a vibrant pink ensemble performed in by Robbie Williams. His performance in front of a massive crowd of spectators was hailed as a success.
Perhaps you don't like his music. Perhaps you believe he is the finest offering to music in history. Or you could adopt a balanced view, conceding that some tracks are belting while others are awful.
The key argument is that amusement can manifest in countless ways. You like what you like. There is no universal formula to craft literature or even Test cricket.
The Incomparable Variety of The Long Game
The traditional format boasts incomparable variety. It's difficult to think of another sport where the playing is so dependent on conditions.
The weather, the time of day, the cricket ball – the factors are countless. Above all is the pitch.
If the long game is art, the wicket is the foundation on which the players paint their masterpiece.
A Test of Cubism: The Melbourne Spectacle
The Boxing Day fixture between Australia and England was the game deconstructed, the established format taken to pieces and stuck back together in a bizarre shape.
Let's be clear, this isn't a justification of the wicket which yielded a triumph and the another sub-three-day finish of the series.
Allowing 10mm of grass on the pitch, resulting in 36 wickets tumbling in less than a brief period, is not a fair contest between batter and bowler.
A Varied History: The Nature of Test Cricket
But any suggestion this was a inferior show, one that should be qualified as illegitimate, is incorrect.
Test cricket is a rich tapestry, a long history and ongoing. At times, like in Melbourne, the ball moves excessively for the fast men. Other times, it grips and turns on a dust bowl. At other venues, the pitch is flat as a pancake, other times it spits like a cobra.
The thrillers are even more exciting owing to the time made during quieter periods.
Adaptation: The Core Skill
Some factors are accepted more readily than others.
The debate in Melbourne was that the balance was skewed excessively towards the bowlers. That the top batters were prevented from playing their natural game.
This level of cricket is about adapting to challenges – interpreting the situation and responding effectively. The best individual innings were made by acknowledged players. One line-up committed more errors than the other, and thus ended up second best.
Sheer Celebration: The Fan Perspective
Try telling the devotees who have suffered a long drought that this wasn't compelling.
Among the crowd of the stadium, a sea of people celebrated and sang their songs, producing a party atmosphere in a bastion of sport.
There was hope as the fielding side excelled, advantage when the top order fought back, and unconditional love when the result was secured.
Extreme Ends: The Spectrum of Test Matches
The MCG has form with pitch problems. Eight years ago, a Test there featured a strip with all the life of a a non-event.
That fixture was a grind, with minimal action and slow play. The latest encounter and that slow Test are diametrically opposed points of the spectrum – neither the standard, yet significance can be attached to both.
At this stage into the current series, it is the two-day matches that will be most remembered in the collective consciousness.
"Far from being the end of Test cricket at all," commented a veteran. "Fans who have been lucky enough to see these short time have been treated to some real entertainment. An unusual spectacle."
Signs of Progress: Building for the Future
In the build-up to this Test, the captain spoke like a man carrying the heavy burden on his mind.
The team responded for him, reinstating the joy to his countenance.
New faces delivered with key contributions. These are incremental gains, not nearly enough to secure long-term stability, but something to use as a platform.
In the end, this MCG win takes its place among other notable performances in meaningless games.
As the crowd left into a beautiful night, the squad assembled on the field to commence their own enjoyment.
Enjoy the drink, men. It's well deserved.
