Displayed inside a glass case on the third floor of the iconic Melbourne stadium sits a neon pink outfit donned by Robbie Williams. The show in front of a massive crowd of fans was considered a triumph.
It's possible you appreciate the performer. Maybe you feel he is the finest offering to music known to man. You might take a middle ground, conceding that some tracks are belting while others are awful.
The key argument is that entertainment can manifest in countless ways. Tastes vary. There is no universal formula to produce music or even Test cricket.
The Unrivalled Depth of Test Cricket
The five-day game boasts peerless complexity. It is hard to think of another sport where the outcome is so reliant upon the environment.
The weather, the time of day, the ball – the variables are numerous. Crucially is the playing surface.
If the long game is a form of art, the wicket is the foundation on which the players craft their legacy.
An Abstract Contest: The Fourth Test
The recent Melbourne match between Australia and England was the game deconstructed, the established format taken to pieces and stuck back together in an unusual manner.
Let's be clear, this isn't a justification of the pitch which yielded a victory and the second two-day Test of the series.
Leaving a thick layer on the pitch, leading to 36 wickets tumbling in less than a brief period, is not an even battle between offense and defense.
A Varied History: The Core of Test Cricket
But any notion this was a diminished spectacle, one that should be footnoted as inauthentic, is incorrect.
Test cricket is a varied portfolio, 2,615 parts and ongoing. On occasion, like in Melbourne, the cricket ball moves excessively for the fast men. Sometimes, it grips and turns on a spinning track. At other venues, the pitch is dead, other times it explodes.
The thrillers are particularly captivating because of the investment committed during quieter periods.
Adjustment: The Core Skill
Certain variables are embraced more easily than others.
The debate in during the match was that the contest was weighted unfairly towards the fielding side. That the best players were unable from demonstrating their skill.
The format is about finding solutions – interpreting the situation and adjusting accordingly. The two highest individual scores were made by world-class players. One side committed more errors than the other, and thus lost.
Sheer Celebration: The Fan Perspective
Try telling the devotees who have suffered a long drought that this was not entertaining.
Among the crowd of the MCG, thousands celebrated and created an atmosphere, producing a festive mood in a stronghold of national pride.
There was hope as the attack excelled, advantage when players fought back, and rapturous celebration when the win was achieved.
Extreme Ends: The Range of Test Matches
The MCG has form with pitch problems. Previously, a Test there featured a strip with all the life of a a damp squib.
That contest was a marathon, with limited drama and slow play. The two-day game and that previous match are polar opposites of the spectrum – neither the standard, yet historical weight can be attached to them.
Four Tests into the current series, it is the quick finishes that will remain iconic in the history books.
"This isn't the death of the long game at all," said a veteran. "Spectators who have been lucky enough to see these 48 hours have been treated to some real entertainment. An unusual spectacle."
Small Victories: Looking Ahead
In the build-up to this Test, the captain addressed the media like a man carrying the enormous pressure on his shoulders.
The team responded for him, reinstating the joy to his countenance.
New faces delivered with key contributions. These are small positives, certainly not enough to ensure long-term stability, but a starting point to develop from.
Ultimately, 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 begin their own celebrations.
Enjoy the drink, men. You've earned this one.
