Displayed inside a showcase on the upper level of the MCG sits a electric pink outfit performed in by the entertainer. The concert in front of a hundred thousand fans was hailed as a triumph.
It's possible you appreciate the performer. Perhaps you believe he is the greatest gift to music known to man. You might take a middle ground, admitting that some songs are excellent while others are terrible.
The central idea is that enjoyment can be delivered diversely. Preferences differ. There is no universal formula to craft art or even the longest format.
The Peerless Spectrum of The Test Format
Test cricket boasts peerless complexity. It is hard to think of another sport where the contest is so dictated by external factors.
The climate, the session, the cricket ball – the variables are numerous. Crucially is the wicket.
If the format is a form of art, the wicket is the foundation on which the athletes create their art.
A Test of Cubism: The Fourth Test
The fourth Ashes Test between the two sides was Test cricket cubism, the traditional sport broken apart and reassembled in abstract form.
It must be stated this is not a justification of the surface which resulted in a win and the another short match of the contest.
Allowing a thick layer on the surface, resulting in a cascade of wickets tumbling in less than six sessions, is not an even battle between bat and ball.
A Diverse Legacy: The Core of Test Cricket
But any suggestion this was a lesser event, one that should be qualified as illegitimate, is wide of the mark.
Test cricket is a diverse canvas, 2,615 parts and ongoing. At times, like in Melbourne, the ball moves excessively for the pace bowlers. Sometimes, it turns square on a dry surface. At other venues, the pitch is unresponsive, other times it explodes.
The close matches are particularly captivating due to the investment committed in other matches.
Adjustment: The True Test
Certain variables are embraced more easily than others.
The argument in during the match was that the contest was tipped too far towards the attack. That the skilled individuals were hindered from playing their natural game.
This level of cricket is about adapting to challenges – reading the conditions and adjusting appropriately. The two highest individual innings were made by world-class batters. One line-up was less disciplined than the other, and thus ended up second best.
Unbridled Joy: The Supporters' View
Attempt to convince the supporters who have endured 18 winless matches that this was not entertaining.
Among the crowd of the MCG, countless fans made noise and chanted, producing a party atmosphere in a stronghold of sport.
There was hope as the attack excelled, momentum when the top order responded, and pure joy when the win was secured.
Extreme Ends: The Spectrum of Test Matches
The venue has previous experience with pitch problems. Eight years ago, a game there featured a pitch with the excitement of a pulled Christmas cracker.
That fixture was a marathon, with minimal action and slow play. The two-day game and that previous match are polar opposites of the spectrum – neither ideal, yet historical weight can be ascribed to them.
At this stage into the Ashes contest, it is the two-day matches that will live longest in the collective consciousness.
"Far from being the death of the long game at all," commented a past champion. "Spectators who have been lucky enough to see these two days have been treated to some genuine drama. A unique show."
Signs of Progress: Building for the Future
In the lead-in to this Test, the captain talked like a man carrying the weight of the world on his back.
The squad protected him, bringing back the smile to his persona.
Emerging talents delivered with vital performances. These are small positives, hardly enough to guarantee long-term stability, but a foundation to use as a platform.
In the end, this triumph joins other memorable performances in dead rubbers.
As the supporters slipped away into a glorious Melbourne evening, the players gathered on the field to start their own celebrations.
Enjoy the drink, men. It's well deserved.
