Displayed inside a glass case on the third floor of the iconic Melbourne stadium sits a neon pink ensemble worn by Robbie Williams. His concert in front of a massive crowd of spectators was considered a success.
It's possible you enjoy Robbie Williams. Maybe you feel he is the finest offering to music the world has ever seen. Or you could adopt a balanced view, conceding that some hits are fantastic while others are poor.
The central idea is that enjoyment can manifest in countless ways. You like what you like. There is not a single method to craft art or even five-day cricket.
The Incomparable Variety of The Test Format
The five-day game boasts peerless complexity. It is hard to think of another sport where the outcome is so dictated by the environment.
The climate, the session, the cricket ball – the factors are countless. Above all is the playing surface.
If the long game is a form of art, the strip is the foundation on which the players create their art.
A Test of Cubism: The MCG Match
The fourth Ashes Test between Australia and England was Test cricket cubism, the traditional sport taken to pieces and stuck back together in a bizarre shape.
It must be stated this is not a endorsement of the surface which yielded a triumph and the second two-day Test of the contest.
Having 10mm of grass on the wicket, leading to numerous dismissals falling in less than six sessions, is not a fair contest between offense and defense.
A Rich Tapestry: The Essence of Test Cricket
But any idea this was a inferior show, one that should be marked with an asterisk as illegitimate, is incorrect.
The format is a rich tapestry, 2,615 parts and counting. On occasion, as witnessed recently, the cricket ball does all sorts for the pace bowlers. Other times, it spins sharply on a dust bowl. Sometimes, the pitch is unresponsive, other times it bounces unevenly.
The exciting finishes are even more exciting owing to the patience devoted in other matches.
Adaptation: The Real Challenge
Certain variables are tolerated more readily than others.
The debate in Melbourne was that the contest was tipped too far towards the fielding side. That the top batters were hindered from playing their natural game.
This level of cricket is about problem solving – assessing the conditions and adjusting appropriately. The two highest individual innings were made by world-class batters. One team was less disciplined than the other, and thus ended up second best.
Pure Elation: The Supporters' View
Go and inform the supporters who have endured 18 winless matches that this lacked spectacle.
In a corner of the stadium, thousands celebrated and chanted, generating a festive mood in a bastion of Australian cricket.
There was optimism as the attack excelled, momentum when batters scored quickly, and pure joy when the win was confirmed.
Polar Opposites: The Spectrum of Test Matches
The Melbourne has a history with controversial surfaces. In the past, a Test there featured a strip with the character of a a damp squib.
That fixture was a marathon, with minimal action and slow play. The two-day game and that slow Test are polar opposites of the range – both are not the standard, yet significance can be attached to each.
Deep into the series into the current series, it is the two-day matches that will be most remembered in the collective consciousness.
"Far from being the demise of the format at all," commented a veteran. "Spectators who have been privileged to see these two days have been experienced some genuine drama. A unique show."
Baby Steps: Building for the Future
In the build-up to this match, the skipper spoke like a man carrying the enormous pressure on his mind.
The players responded for him, bringing back the smile to his countenance.
Different players performed with crucial roles. These are small positives, not nearly enough to ensure long-term futures, but something to develop from.
In the end, this Melbourne victory takes its place among other notable performances in meaningless games.
As the supporters slipped away into a beautiful night, the squad gathered on the turf to start their own festivities.
Enjoy the drink, lads. It's well deserved.
