In a showcase on the elevated floor of the Melbourne Cricket Ground is housed a neon pink outfit performed in by the pop star. The performance in front of a massive crowd of fans was hailed as a major hit.
Perhaps you don't appreciate Robbie Williams. Perhaps you believe he is the finest offering to music in history. You might take a middle ground, acknowledging that some tracks are belting while others are poor.
The point being is that entertainment can manifest in countless ways. Preferences differ. There is no one way to produce art or even Test cricket.
The Incomparable Variety of Test Cricket
The traditional format boasts unrivalled depth. It's difficult to think of another sport where the outcome is so dictated by external factors.
The climate, the session, the red ball – the factors are countless. Most important is the wicket.
If Test cricket is art, the wicket is the blank slate on which the cricketers create their art.
An Abstract Contest: The MCG Match
The recent Melbourne match between the old rivals was the game deconstructed, the established format taken to pieces and reassembled in abstract form.
Let's be clear, this isn't a endorsement of the surface which resulted in a win and the second two-day Test of the series.
Allowing excessive grass on the surface, causing 36 wickets falling in less than two days, is not a fair contest between batter and bowler.
A Rich Tapestry: The Nature of Test Cricket
But any suggestion this was a lesser event, one that should be qualified as illegitimate, is wide of the mark.
The long game is a varied portfolio, over two thousand matches and counting. At times, like in Melbourne, the cricket ball behaves unpredictably for the seamers. In contrast, it grips and turns on a spinning track. At other venues, the pitch is flat as a pancake, other times it bounces unevenly.
The exciting finishes are all the more thrilling because of the investment devoted in other matches.
Adjustment: The Real Challenge
Some factors are embraced more readily than others.
The contention in Melbourne was that the balance was weighted unfairly towards the bowlers. That the best players were hindered from showcasing their talents.
Test cricket is about adapting to challenges – reading the conditions and adapting effectively. The two highest individual scores were made by world-class batters. One line-up was less disciplined than the other, and thus lost.
Pure Elation: The Supporters' View
Go and inform the fans who have suffered years of defeat that this was not entertaining.
In a corner of the ground, countless fans made noise and sang their songs, fostering a carnival vibe in a heartland of sport.
There was optimism as the fielding side surged, advantage when the top order responded, and unconditional love when the win was secured.
Extreme Ends: The Range of Test Matches
The Melbourne has a history with pitch problems. Previously, a Test there featured a strip with all the life of a pulled Christmas cracker.
That match was a grind, with limited drama and interminable tedium. The two-day game and that previous match are polar opposites of the spectrum – one is not more the standard, yet historical weight can be ascribed to both.
Four Tests into the ongoing battle, it is the shortest games that will be most remembered in the memory.
"Far from being the death of Test cricket at all," said a former player. "Spectators who have been lucky enough to see these short time have been experienced some genuine drama. A unique show."
Signs of Progress: Building for the Future
In the preparation to this Test, the captain talked like a man carrying the weight of the world on his back.
The team responded for him, reinstating the positive demeanor to his countenance.
Different players performed with crucial roles. These are small positives, not nearly enough to secure long-term futures, but something to use as a platform.
In the end, this MCG win takes its place among other memorable performances in dead rubbers.
As the crowd slipped away into a beautiful night, the players gathered on the outfield to commence their own festivities.
Savour the moment, boys. You've earned this one.
