In a display cabinet on the elevated floor of the MCG is housed a neon pink outfit donned by Robbie Williams. The show in front of 100,024 attendees was considered a triumph.
You might not like the performer. Maybe you feel he is the finest offering to music in history. Alternatively, you may hold a middle ground, acknowledging that some tracks are belting while others are poor.
The key argument is that amusement can be delivered diversely. Preferences differ. There is no one way to create music or even five-day cricket.
The Peerless Spectrum of The Long Game
The five-day game boasts incomparable variety. It is hard to think of another sport where the playing is so dependent on external factors.
The elements, the time of day, the cricket ball – the list is endless. Crucially is the pitch.
If the long game is a form of art, the wicket is the foundation on which the players paint their masterpiece.
An Abstract Contest: The Fourth Test
The recent Melbourne match between the two sides was Test cricket cubism, the great game broken apart and stuck back together in a bizarre shape.
Let's be clear, this isn't a justification of the wicket which produced a victory and the another sub-three-day finish of the contest.
Having 10mm of grass on the surface, leading to 36 wickets falling in less than a brief period, is not a fair contest between batter and bowler.
A Varied History: The Core of Test Cricket
But any suggestion this was a lesser event, one that should be marked with an asterisk as not a proper Test, is mistaken.
The format is a diverse canvas, 2,615 parts and still growing. Sometimes, like in Melbourne, the cricket ball does all sorts for the fast men. Sometimes, it spins sharply on a dry surface. 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 devoted during quieter periods.
Adaptation: The Core Skill
Some factors are tolerated more easily than others.
The contention in during the match was that the equilibrium was weighted unfairly towards the bowlers. That the skilled individuals were prevented from demonstrating their skill.
Test cricket is about problem solving – interpreting the wicket and responding accordingly. The best individual innings were made by acknowledged players. One team made more mistakes than the other, and thus were defeated.
Pure Elation: The Fan Perspective
Attempt to convince the fans who have endured years of defeat that this lacked spectacle.
Among the crowd of the stadium, thousands made noise and chanted, producing a carnival vibe in a stronghold of Australian cricket.
There was belief as the fielding side excelled, impetus when the top order scored quickly, and pure joy when the victory was achieved.
Polar Opposites: The Spectrum of Test Matches
The Melbourne has previous experience with pitch problems. Eight years ago, a Test there featured a strip with the character of a a damp squib.
That fixture was a grind, with limited drama and interminable tedium. This recent match and that drawn affair are diametrically opposed points of the scale – both are not the standard, yet historical weight can be attached to both.
At this stage into the current series, it is the two-day matches that will remain iconic in the history books.
"This isn't the demise of the long game at all," commented a veteran. "The people who have been privileged to see these two days have been given some fantastic sport. An unusual spectacle."
Baby Steps: Looking Ahead
In the build-up to this Test, the captain talked like a man carrying the weight of the world on his back.
The players protected him, bringing back the joy to his face.
Different players stepped up with vital performances. These are small positives, not nearly enough to secure long-term success, but something to build on.
Ultimately, this MCG win is added to other memorable performances in similar circumstances.
As the crowd left into a stunning sunset, the players assembled on the turf to begin their own celebrations.
Celebrate the win, boys. You've earned this one.
