In a display cabinet on the third floor of the MCG sits a neon pink ensemble donned by Robbie Williams. The performance in front of 100,024 spectators was seen as a success.
Perhaps you don't like his music. Perhaps you believe he is the finest offering to music known to man. Alternatively, you may hold a balanced view, admitting that some songs are excellent while others are terrible.
The point being is that amusement can manifest in countless ways. Preferences differ. There is not a single method to craft literature or even the longest format.
The Incomparable Variety of The Test Format
The five-day game boasts peerless complexity. It's difficult to think of another sport where the outcome is so dependent on external factors.
The elements, the session, the ball – the factors are countless. Above all is the playing surface.
If Test cricket is a form of art, the pitch is the foundation on which the cricketers craft their legacy.
A Test of Cubism: The MCG Match
The fourth Ashes Test between the two sides was an abstract version of cricket, the great game dismantled and reconstructed in abstract form.
It must be stated this is not a endorsement of the pitch which produced a win and the second two-day Test of the contest.
Leaving a thick layer on the pitch, causing 36 wickets tumbling in less than two days, is not an even battle between offense and defense.
A Rich Tapestry: The Core of Test Cricket
But any suggestion this was a inferior show, one that should be footnoted as inauthentic, is mistaken.
Test cricket is a varied portfolio, over two thousand matches and still growing. Sometimes, as witnessed recently, the ball does all sorts for the seamers. Sometimes, it turns square on a spinning track. At other venues, the pitch is dead, other times it bounces unevenly.
The close matches are particularly captivating because of the time committed in other matches.
Adjustment: The Core Skill
Certain variables are accepted more freely than others.
The debate in at the MCG was that the balance was weighted unfairly towards the bowlers. That the skilled individuals were hindered from showcasing their talents.
This level of cricket is about finding solutions – interpreting the wicket and responding appropriately. The best individual innings were made by world-class players. One side committed more errors than the other, and thus lost.
Unbridled Joy: The Fan Perspective
Try telling the devotees who have suffered a long drought that this was not entertaining.
In a corner of the MCG, a sea of people celebrated and chanted, producing a carnival vibe in a stronghold of national pride.
There was belief as the attack excelled, impetus when batters responded, and unconditional love when the win was achieved.
Extreme Ends: The Spectrum of Test Matches
The MCG has form with controversial surfaces. In the past, a Test there featured a pitch with the character of a a damp squib.
That match was a marathon, with limited drama and slow play. This recent match and that previous match are polar opposites of the range – one is not more ideal, yet significance can be attached to both.
At this stage into the ongoing battle, it is the shortest games that will live longest in the history books.
"It's not the demise of the long game at all," observed a former player. "The people who have been privileged to see these short time have been treated to some genuine drama. Different entertainment."
Small Victories: A Glimmer of Hope
In the build-up to this Test, the captain addressed the media like a man carrying the weight of the world on his back.
The team protected him, bringing back the positive demeanor to his countenance.
Different players delivered with crucial roles. These are incremental gains, hardly enough to guarantee long-term futures, but a starting point to use as a platform.
In the end, this MCG win joins other notable performances in meaningless games.
As the fans departed into a glorious Melbourne evening, the team congregated on the outfield to commence their own celebrations.
Celebrate the win, men. It's well deserved.
