In a glass case on the elevated floor of the MCG rests a neon pink ensemble performed in by Robbie Williams. The performance in front of a massive crowd of fans was seen as a success.
You might not appreciate the performer. You might think he is the greatest gift to music the world has ever seen. You might take a reasonable stance, conceding that some tracks are fantastic while others are awful.
The point being is that enjoyment can take many forms. Tastes vary. There is no universal formula to create art or even five-day cricket.
The Unrivalled Depth of The Test Format
Test cricket boasts peerless complexity. One struggles to think of another sport where the contest is so dependent on external factors.
The elements, the time of day, the cricket ball – the list is endless. Crucially is the playing surface.
If the long game is art, the wicket is the blank slate on which the athletes paint their masterpiece.
An Abstract Contest: The Fourth Test
The Boxing Day fixture between the two sides was an abstract version of cricket, the traditional sport broken apart and reassembled in an unusual manner.
Let's be clear, this isn't a justification of the surface which resulted in a triumph and the second two-day Test of the contest.
Allowing excessive grass on the surface, leading to 36 wickets falling in less than six sessions, is not a balanced duel between batter and bowler.
A Rich Tapestry: The Core of Test Cricket
But any suggestion this was a lesser event, one that should be qualified as not a proper Test, is wide of the mark.
The long game is a rich tapestry, over two thousand matches and still growing. At times, as witnessed recently, the ball does all sorts for the pace bowlers. Other times, it turns square on a spinning track. Sometimes, the pitch is unresponsive, other times it bounces unevenly.
The exciting finishes are particularly captivating due to the time made elsewhere.
Problem Solving: The Core Skill
Certain variables are accepted more easily than others.
The debate in at the MCG was that the contest was skewed excessively towards the attack. That the skilled individuals were unable from showcasing their talents.
Test cricket is about finding solutions – reading the conditions and adapting appropriately. The top two individual scores were made by acknowledged players. One side was less disciplined than the other, and thus lost.
Sheer Celebration: The Fan Perspective
Try telling the devotees who have suffered a long drought that this lacked spectacle.
In one section of the ground, a sea of people celebrated and sang their songs, fostering a festive mood in a heartland of sport.
There was optimism as the attack excelled, momentum when players responded, and rapturous celebration when the win was achieved.
Extreme Ends: The Range of Test Matches
The venue has previous experience with difficult wickets. In the past, a Test there featured a pitch with the excitement of a a non-event.
That match was a slog, with few wickets and endless boredom. The two-day game and that slow Test are diametrically opposed points of the scale – neither ideal, yet significance can be ascribed to each.
Deep into the series into the Ashes contest, it is the shortest games that will remain iconic in the history books.
"It's not the end of Test cricket at all," observed a former player. "Fans who have been lucky enough to see these two days have been experienced some genuine drama. An unusual spectacle."
Small Victories: Building for the Future
In the build-up to this Test, the leader talked like a man carrying the weight of the world on his mind.
The squad responded for him, bringing back the joy to his persona.
Emerging talents stepped up with crucial roles. These are baby steps, certainly not enough to guarantee long-term futures, but something to develop from.
Ultimately, this triumph is added to other memorable performances in dead rubbers.
As the fans departed into a glorious Melbourne evening, the players assembled on the outfield to commence their own enjoyment.
Celebrate the win, men. You've earned this one.
