In a showcase on the elevated floor of the Melbourne Cricket Ground rests a electric pink outfit performed in by Robbie Williams. His show in front of 100,024 fans was seen as a success.
Perhaps you don't appreciate his music. Perhaps you believe he is the ultimate present to music in history. Or you could adopt a balanced view, conceding that some songs are fantastic while others are awful.
The central idea is that enjoyment can be delivered diversely. You like what you like. There is not a single method to produce literature or even the longest format.
The Peerless Spectrum of The Long Game
Test cricket boasts unrivalled depth. One struggles to think of another sport where the outcome is so reliant upon the environment.
The elements, the session, the ball – the variables are numerous. Crucially is the playing surface.
If the long game is art, the pitch is the blank slate on which the athletes paint their masterpiece.
An Abstract Contest: The MCG Match
The fourth Ashes Test between the two sides was an abstract version of cricket, the traditional sport dismantled and stuck back together in an unusual manner.
It must be stated this is not a defence of the surface which resulted in a victory and the second two-day Test of the Ashes battle.
Allowing a thick layer on the pitch, leading to numerous dismissals falling in less than two days, is not a balanced duel between bat and ball.
A Varied History: The Essence of Test Cricket
But any suggestion this was a diminished spectacle, one that should be qualified as illegitimate, is wide of the mark.
Test cricket is a diverse canvas, over two thousand matches and counting. At times, as seen at the MCG, the cricket ball behaves unpredictably for the fast men. In contrast, it turns square on a dust bowl. Sometimes, the pitch is dead, other times it explodes.
The close matches are particularly captivating because of the patience made elsewhere.
Problem Solving: The Core Skill
Certain variables are tolerated more readily than others.
The contention in at the MCG was that the balance was skewed excessively towards the bowlers. That the best players were prevented from demonstrating their skill.
Test cricket is about adapting to challenges – assessing the conditions and responding appropriately. The top two individual scores were made by world-class stars. One team made more mistakes than the other, and thus lost.
Unbridled Joy: The Fan Perspective
Try telling the supporters who have suffered years of defeat that this lacked spectacle.
In one section of the stadium, a sea of people made noise and chanted, producing a festive mood in a heartland of sport.
There was belief as the bowlers surged, impetus when batters fought back, and rapturous celebration when the victory was achieved.
Contrasting Examples: The Range of Test Matches
The Melbourne has previous experience with difficult wickets. In the past, a match there featured a strip with the character of a a non-event.
That contest was a grind, with limited drama and endless boredom. This recent match and that previous match are extreme ends of the range – one is not more ideal, yet significance can be ascribed to each.
At this stage into the Ashes contest, it is the quick finishes that will remain iconic in the collective consciousness.
"This isn't the death of the format at all," commented a veteran. "Fans who have been privileged to see these short time have been experienced some fantastic sport. An unusual spectacle."
Small Victories: Building for the Future
In the build-up to this Test, the skipper spoke like a man carrying the enormous pressure on his back.
The team delivered for him, reinstating the positive demeanor to his countenance.
Emerging talents delivered with key contributions. These are incremental gains, certainly not enough to ensure long-term stability, but a starting point to build on.
In the end, this Melbourne victory joins other notable performances in dead rubbers.
As the fans departed into a stunning sunset, the squad assembled on the outfield to begin their own festivities.
Celebrate the win, lads. It's well deserved.
