In a display cabinet on the third floor of the Melbourne Cricket Ground sits a neon pink suit performed in by Robbie Williams. His concert in front of a massive crowd of spectators was considered a major hit.
It's possible you appreciate the performer. Perhaps you believe he is the finest offering to music known to man. You might take a middle ground, acknowledging that some hits are belting while others are poor.
The central idea is that entertainment can be delivered diversely. You like what you like. There is no universal formula to produce art or even Test cricket.
The Incomparable Variety of The Test Format
Test cricket boasts peerless complexity. It is hard to think of another sport where the outcome is so dependent on conditions.
The weather, the time of day, the ball – the list is endless. Above all is the playing surface.
If the format is art, the pitch is the foundation on which the players create their art.
A Broken-Down Battle: The MCG Match
The recent Melbourne match between the two sides was the game deconstructed, the traditional sport dismantled and reconstructed in abstract form.
It must be stated this is not a justification of the wicket which produced a win and the another short match of the contest.
Having excessive grass on the wicket, resulting in 36 wickets falling in less than two days, is not an even battle between batter and bowler.
A Varied History: The Essence of Test Cricket
But any suggestion this was a inferior show, one that should be qualified as inauthentic, is incorrect.
Test cricket is a varied portfolio, over two thousand matches and still growing. At times, like in Melbourne, the cricket ball moves excessively for the fast men. In contrast, it spins sharply on a dust bowl. Sometimes, the pitch is unresponsive, other times it spits like a cobra.
The thrillers are all the more thrilling because of the time made elsewhere.
Adaptation: The Core Skill
Specific conditions are embraced more readily than others.
The contention in at the MCG was that the balance was skewed excessively towards the bowlers. That the skilled individuals were unable from playing their natural game.
The format is about finding solutions – interpreting the conditions and adjusting effectively. The top two individual scores were made by recognized batters. One side was less disciplined than the other, and thus ended up second best.
Unbridled Joy: For Those Who Waited
Attempt to convince the supporters who have suffered 18 winless matches that this lacked spectacle.
In a corner of the ground, thousands waved their flags and chanted, generating a festive mood in a stronghold of Australian cricket.
There was optimism as the attack surged, impetus when players fought back, and rapturous celebration when the win was achieved.
Contrasting Examples: The Range of Test Matches
The venue has form with controversial surfaces. In the past, a game there featured a wicket with all the life of a pulled Christmas cracker.
That fixture was a grind, with few wickets and endless boredom. The two-day game and that previous match are diametrically opposed points of the spectrum – one is not more perfect, yet significance can be attached to them.
Four Tests into the Ashes contest, it is the quick finishes that will be most remembered in the collective consciousness.
"Far from being the end of Test cricket at all," observed a former player. "The people who have been privileged to see these short time have been experienced some real entertainment. An unusual spectacle."
Small Victories: Building for the Future
In the preparation to this match, the captain spoke like a man carrying the weight of the world on his back.
The squad responded for him, restoring the positive demeanor to his face.
New faces performed with key contributions. These are small positives, hardly enough to ensure long-term futures, but a starting point to develop from.
In the end, this Melbourne victory takes its place among other historic performances in dead rubbers.
As the fans left into a beautiful night, the players gathered on the field to commence their own celebrations.
Savour the moment, boys. It's well deserved.
