Displayed inside a showcase on the elevated floor of the Melbourne Cricket Ground rests a vibrant pink suit performed in by Robbie Williams. His concert in front of a massive crowd of spectators was considered a success.
Perhaps you don't appreciate Robbie Williams. Perhaps you believe he is the ultimate present to music the world has ever seen. You might take a middle ground, conceding that some songs are excellent while others are poor.
The central idea is that amusement can take many forms. You like what you like. There is no one way to create art or even the longest format.
The Incomparable Variety of The Long Game
The five-day game boasts incomparable variety. One struggles to think of another sport where the contest is so dictated by conditions.
The weather, the time of day, the cricket ball – the list is endless. Most important is the wicket.
If Test cricket is a form of art, the wicket is the canvas on which the athletes craft their legacy.
A Broken-Down Battle: The Melbourne Spectacle
The fourth Ashes Test between Australia and England was Test cricket cubism, the established format dismantled and stuck back together in an unusual manner.
It must be stated this is not a defence of the pitch which yielded a triumph and the second two-day Test of the series.
Having 10mm of grass on the pitch, causing a cascade of wickets being taken in less than six sessions, is not an even battle between bat and ball.
A Varied History: The Essence of Test Cricket
But any idea this was a diminished spectacle, one that should be qualified as inauthentic, is wide of the mark.
The format is a diverse canvas, 2,615 parts and still growing. At times, as witnessed recently, the ball moves excessively for the fast men. Other times, it grips and turns on a dry surface. At other venues, the pitch is dead, other times it explodes.
The close matches are particularly captivating owing to the patience made elsewhere.
Adaptation: The True Test
Specific conditions are embraced more freely than others.
The argument in Melbourne was that the balance was skewed excessively towards the bowlers. That the top batters were hindered from demonstrating their skill.
Test cricket is about problem solving – interpreting the situation and responding accordingly. The two highest individual scores were made by world-class stars. One team was less disciplined than the other, and thus lost.
Unbridled Joy: The Fan Perspective
Attempt to convince the fans who have endured a long drought that this wasn't compelling.
In one section of the ground, a sea of people made noise and chanted, producing a party atmosphere in a bastion of national pride.
There was belief as the bowlers dominated, impetus when the top order scored quickly, and unconditional love when the victory was achieved.
Extreme Ends: The Variety of Test Matches
The MCG has form with controversial surfaces. In the past, a Test there featured a wicket with the excitement of a a non-event.
That match was a slog, with few wickets and slow play. The latest encounter and that previous match are polar opposites of the spectrum – one is not more ideal, yet significance can be attached to both.
Deep into the series into the current series, it is the two-day matches that will be most remembered in the history books.
"It's not the death of Test cricket at all," observed a past champion. "Fans who have been privileged to see these two days have been given some real entertainment. Different entertainment."
Baby Steps: Looking Ahead
In the preparation to this match, the leader addressed the media like a man carrying the enormous pressure on his shoulders.
The players protected him, restoring the joy to his countenance.
New faces delivered with key contributions. These are small positives, certainly not enough to guarantee long-term success, but something to develop from.
Ultimately, this triumph is added to other historic performances in meaningless games.
As the fans departed into a stunning sunset, the players congregated on the outfield to begin their own festivities.
Savour the moment, men. This victory was hard-fought.
