Within a showcase on the third floor of the Melbourne Cricket Ground rests a neon pink suit performed in by the entertainer. His concert in front of a hundred thousand fans was considered a success.
Perhaps you don't appreciate Robbie Williams. Perhaps you believe he is the finest offering to music in history. Or you could adopt a reasonable stance, conceding that some songs are fantastic while others are poor.
The point being is that amusement can take many forms. You like what you like. There is no universal formula to produce art or even Test cricket.
The Incomparable Variety of The Long Game
Test cricket boasts peerless complexity. One struggles to think of another sport where the contest is so reliant upon external factors.
The elements, the hour of play, the cricket ball – the list is endless. Above all is the pitch.
If the format is a form of art, the strip is the foundation on which the cricketers create their art.
A Test of Cubism: The Fourth Test
The Boxing Day fixture between the two sides was an abstract version of cricket, the established format broken apart and stuck back together in an unusual manner.
This is not a defence of the pitch which produced a win and the another sub-three-day finish of the contest.
Leaving excessive grass on the wicket, causing numerous dismissals being taken in less than a brief period, is not a balanced duel between offense and defense.
A Varied History: The Nature of Test Cricket
But any notion this was a diminished spectacle, one that should be qualified as not a proper Test, is incorrect.
The format is a rich tapestry, a long history and still growing. On occasion, like in Melbourne, the cricket ball moves excessively for the fast men. Sometimes, it grips and turns on a dust bowl. Sometimes, the pitch is dead, other times it explodes.
The thrillers are all the more thrilling due to the patience committed elsewhere.
Adaptation: The Real Challenge
Some factors are accepted more freely than others.
The contention in Melbourne was that the balance was skewed excessively towards the bowlers. That the top batters were unable from showcasing their talents.
The format is about adapting to challenges – assessing the wicket and adjusting accordingly. The best individual innings were made by recognized batters. One team made more mistakes than the other, and thus lost.
Pure Elation: The Supporters' View
Try telling the fans who have experienced a long drought that this was not entertaining.
In a corner of the ground, thousands waved their flags and created an atmosphere, generating a party atmosphere in a bastion of sport.
There was hope as the attack excelled, advantage when the top order scored quickly, and rapturous celebration when the victory was achieved.
Extreme Ends: The Spectrum of Test Matches
The venue has form with difficult wickets. Previously, a game there featured a pitch with the character of a a damp squib.
That fixture was a marathon, with limited drama and endless boredom. This recent match and that drawn affair are diametrically opposed points of the spectrum – neither ideal, yet significance can be ascribed to both.
Four Tests into the ongoing battle, it is the quick finishes that will remain iconic in the memory.
"It's not the death of the format at all," commented a veteran. "Spectators who have been lucky enough to see these two days have been given some fantastic sport. An unusual spectacle."
Baby Steps: Building for the Future
In the preparation to this Test, the skipper talked like a man carrying the enormous pressure on his mind.
The team responded for him, reinstating the positive demeanor to his persona.
New faces performed with vital performances. These are small positives, hardly enough to guarantee long-term futures, but a starting point to use as a platform.
In the end, this MCG win is added to other memorable performances in meaningless games.
As the supporters departed into a glorious Melbourne evening, the squad assembled on the turf to start their own celebrations.
Savour the moment, men. It's well deserved.
