In a display cabinet on the upper level of the MCG is housed a vibrant pink ensemble performed in by the pop star. His show in front of a massive crowd of fans was seen as a triumph.
Perhaps you don't appreciate Robbie Williams. Maybe you feel he is the finest offering to music in history. Alternatively, you may hold a reasonable stance, admitting that some songs are fantastic while others are terrible.
The point being is that amusement can take many forms. Tastes vary. There is not a single method to produce literature or even five-day cricket.
The Peerless Spectrum of Test Cricket
The traditional format boasts incomparable variety. It is hard to think of another sport where the contest is so dependent on conditions.
The weather, the hour of play, the cricket ball – the variables are numerous. Above all is the pitch.
If the format is a form of art, the wicket is the canvas on which the players craft their legacy.
An Abstract Contest: The Melbourne Spectacle
The Boxing Day fixture between Australia and England was the game deconstructed, the great game taken to pieces and stuck back together in a bizarre shape.
This is not a defence of the surface which yielded a win and the second two-day Test of the contest.
Having a thick layer on the wicket, causing 36 wickets falling in less than two days, is not a fair contest between bat and ball.
A Rich Tapestry: The Core of Test Cricket
But any notion this was a inferior show, one that should be qualified as not a proper Test, is wide of the mark.
The long game is a varied portfolio, a long history and counting. Sometimes, as seen at the MCG, the cricket ball moves excessively for the seamers. Sometimes, it turns square on a spinning track. Sometimes, the pitch is flat as a pancake, other times it spits like a cobra.
The exciting finishes are even more exciting because of the investment devoted in other matches.
Adaptation: The True Test
Some factors are tolerated more readily than others.
The debate in at the MCG was that the contest was tipped too far towards the fielding side. That the best players were hindered from showcasing their talents.
The format is about adapting to challenges – assessing the situation and responding accordingly. The two highest individual contributions were made by acknowledged players. One side committed more errors than the other, and thus ended up second best.
Pure Elation: For Those Who Waited
Attempt to convince the supporters who have endured a long drought that this was not entertaining.
In one section of the MCG, thousands celebrated and chanted, generating a festive mood in a stronghold of sport.
There was hope as the fielding side excelled, momentum when the top order scored quickly, and pure joy when the result was confirmed.
Contrasting Examples: The Variety of Test Matches
The venue has a history with difficult wickets. Eight years ago, a Test there featured a pitch with the excitement of a a non-event.
That match was a slog, with limited drama and endless boredom. The latest encounter and that drawn affair are polar opposites of the scale – both are not ideal, yet significance can be attached to both.
At this stage into the current series, it is the shortest games that will be most remembered in the collective consciousness.
"This isn't the demise of Test cricket at all," said a former player. "Fans who have been lucky enough to see these two days have been given some fantastic sport. Different entertainment."
Small Victories: Looking Ahead
In the lead-in to this Test, the captain talked like a man carrying the weight of the world on his back.
The team protected him, reinstating the positive demeanor to his countenance.
Different players performed with crucial roles. These are small positives, certainly not enough to secure long-term stability, but a foundation to build on.
At the very least, this MCG win takes its place among other historic performances in dead rubbers.
As the crowd left into a glorious Melbourne evening, the team gathered on the turf to begin their own festivities.
Savour the moment, boys. This victory was hard-fought.
