In a showcase on the upper level of the iconic Melbourne stadium rests a vibrant pink outfit performed in by the entertainer. His performance in front of 100,024 fans was hailed as a success.
Perhaps you don't like the performer. You might think he is the greatest gift to music in history. Alternatively, you may hold a middle ground, admitting that some tracks are fantastic while others are terrible.
The key argument is that amusement can be delivered diversely. Tastes vary. There is no one way to produce art or even Test cricket.
The Incomparable Variety of Test Cricket
The five-day game boasts peerless complexity. It is hard to think of another sport where the contest is so reliant upon external factors.
The weather, the session, the ball – the list is endless. Crucially is the playing surface.
If the format is art, the pitch is the foundation on which the cricketers craft their legacy.
A Broken-Down Battle: The Fourth Test
The Boxing Day fixture between the old rivals was Test cricket cubism, the traditional sport taken to pieces and stuck back together in abstract form.
It must be stated this is not a justification of the surface which yielded a win and the second two-day Test of the Ashes battle.
Having excessive grass on the pitch, leading to 36 wickets being taken in less than six sessions, is not an even battle between offense and defense.
A Varied History: The Essence of Test Cricket
But any suggestion this was a lesser event, one that should be footnoted as not a proper Test, is wide of the mark.
The long game is a varied portfolio, a long history and counting. Sometimes, like in Melbourne, the ball does all sorts for the seamers. Other times, it grips and turns on a spinning track. At other venues, the pitch is flat as a pancake, other times it spits like a cobra.
The close matches are particularly captivating due to the time committed elsewhere.
Problem Solving: The True Test
Specific conditions are embraced more readily than others.
The debate in during the match was that the balance was weighted unfairly towards the fielding side. That the top batters were unable from demonstrating their skill.
Test cricket is about problem solving – assessing the situation and adapting accordingly. The two highest individual scores were made by world-class batters. One line-up committed more errors than the other, and thus lost.
Sheer Celebration: For Those Who Waited
Go and inform the devotees who have endured a long drought that this lacked spectacle.
In a corner of the ground, a sea of people made noise and chanted, fostering a party atmosphere in a stronghold of sport.
There was optimism as the attack excelled, momentum when batters fought back, and pure joy when the win was secured.
Extreme Ends: The Spectrum of Test Matches
The Melbourne has previous experience with controversial surfaces. Eight years ago, a Test there featured a wicket with the excitement of a a damp squib.
That contest was a slog, with limited drama and endless boredom. This recent match and that previous match are polar opposites of the range – one is not more the standard, yet significance can be ascribed to both.
At this stage into the ongoing battle, it is the quick finishes that will remain iconic in the history books.
"This isn't the end of the long game at all," observed a veteran. "Spectators who have been fortunate to see these two days have been experienced some real entertainment. Different entertainment."
Small Victories: A Glimmer of Hope
In the lead-in to this match, the skipper spoke like a man carrying the weight of the world on his shoulders.
The team delivered for him, reinstating the smile to his face.
Emerging talents stepped up with crucial roles. These are small positives, hardly enough to secure long-term success, but a starting point to develop from.
At the very least, this MCG win joins other memorable performances in similar circumstances.
As the crowd slipped away into a stunning sunset, the team congregated on the outfield to commence their own celebrations.
Enjoy the drink, lads. This victory was hard-fought.
