Displayed inside a display cabinet on the elevated floor of the iconic Melbourne stadium is housed a electric pink suit donned by Robbie Williams. His concert in front of 100,024 spectators was hailed as a major hit.
You might not like the performer. Maybe you feel he is the greatest gift to music in history. Or you could adopt a reasonable stance, conceding that some hits are belting while others are awful.
The key argument is that entertainment can take many forms. Preferences differ. There is no universal formula to craft art or even Test cricket.
The Peerless Spectrum of The Long Game
The traditional format boasts peerless complexity. It's difficult to think of another sport where the outcome is so dictated by external factors.
The weather, the hour of play, the ball – the factors are countless. Crucially is the wicket.
If Test cricket is an artistic pursuit, the wicket is the canvas on which the cricketers create their art.
A Broken-Down Battle: The Melbourne Spectacle
The Boxing Day fixture between the two sides was Test cricket cubism, the great game broken apart and reassembled in a bizarre shape.
Let's be clear, this isn't a defence of the surface which resulted in a victory and the another short match of the series.
Leaving 10mm of grass on the pitch, leading to numerous dismissals being taken in less than six sessions, is not a fair contest between offense and defense.
A Rich Tapestry: The Essence of Test Cricket
But any suggestion this was a inferior show, one that should be marked with an asterisk as inauthentic, is incorrect.
The long game is a diverse canvas, over two thousand matches and ongoing. Sometimes, as seen at the MCG, the ball moves excessively for the pace bowlers. Other times, it turns square on a dust bowl. Sometimes, the pitch is unresponsive, other times it explodes.
The exciting finishes are all the more thrilling owing to the investment devoted elsewhere.
Problem Solving: The Real Challenge
Certain variables are accepted more freely than others.
The argument in Melbourne was that the contest was tipped too far towards the attack. That the top batters were prevented from showcasing their talents.
Test cricket is about finding solutions – interpreting the wicket and adjusting accordingly. The best individual innings were made by recognized stars. One team committed more errors than the other, and thus ended up second best.
Pure Elation: The Supporters' View
Try telling the supporters who have experienced 18 winless matches that this lacked spectacle.
Among the crowd of the stadium, thousands celebrated and sang their songs, producing a carnival vibe in a stronghold of Australian cricket.
There was optimism as the attack excelled, advantage when batters responded, and unconditional love when the victory was achieved.
Contrasting Examples: The Variety of Test Matches
The Melbourne has form with difficult wickets. In the past, a match there featured a wicket with the character of a a non-event.
That fixture was a grind, with minimal action and interminable tedium. The two-day game and that previous match are polar opposites of the scale – one is not more ideal, yet significance can be found in both.
Deep into the series into the ongoing battle, it is the two-day matches that will remain iconic in the collective consciousness.
"This isn't the demise of the format at all," observed a past champion. "The people who have been lucky enough to see these 48 hours have been treated to some real entertainment. A unique show."
Small Victories: Building for the Future
In the lead-in to this Test, the skipper spoke like a man carrying the enormous pressure on his shoulders.
The squad responded for him, reinstating the positive demeanor to his countenance.
Different players stepped up with key contributions. These are baby steps, hardly enough to guarantee long-term stability, but something to build on.
At the very least, this MCG win takes its place among other memorable performances in dead rubbers.
As the crowd departed into a glorious Melbourne evening, the players gathered on the field to start their own celebrations.
Savour the moment, boys. It's well deserved.
