Within a glass case on the upper level of the MCG rests a electric pink outfit performed in by the pop star. The concert in front of 100,024 attendees was seen as a major hit.
Perhaps you don't appreciate Robbie Williams. Maybe you feel he is the ultimate present to music in history. Or you could adopt a middle ground, acknowledging that some songs are excellent while others are awful.
The central idea is that enjoyment can take many forms. Preferences differ. There is not a single method to produce music or even Test cricket.
The Peerless Spectrum of Test Cricket
Test cricket boasts incomparable variety. One struggles to think of another sport where the playing is so dependent on conditions.
The climate, the session, the cricket ball – the list is endless. Crucially is the playing surface.
If the long game is art, the strip is the canvas on which the players create their art.
A Test of Cubism: The MCG Match
The Boxing Day fixture between the two sides was Test cricket cubism, the traditional sport broken apart and stuck back together in an unusual manner.
Let's be clear, this isn't a justification of the wicket which yielded a victory and the another short match of the Ashes battle.
Leaving 10mm of grass on the wicket, resulting in numerous dismissals tumbling in less than a brief period, is not a fair contest between offense and defense.
A Varied History: The Core of Test Cricket
But any notion this was a diminished spectacle, one that should be qualified as inauthentic, is wide of the mark.
Test cricket is a rich tapestry, 2,615 parts and ongoing. Sometimes, like in Melbourne, the cricket ball moves excessively for the fast men. In contrast, it spins sharply on a spinning track. At other venues, the pitch is unresponsive, other times it spits like a cobra.
The thrillers are particularly captivating due to the time made in other matches.
Adjustment: The True Test
Some factors are accepted more easily than others.
The debate in Melbourne was that the equilibrium was skewed excessively towards the attack. That the best players were hindered from playing their natural game.
This level of cricket is about adapting to challenges – interpreting the situation and adjusting accordingly. The top two individual scores were made by recognized players. One line-up committed more errors than the other, and thus were defeated.
Pure Elation: For Those Who Waited
Try telling the fans who have experienced a long drought that this was not entertaining.
In one section of the ground, countless fans waved their flags and created an atmosphere, generating a carnival vibe in a heartland of sport.
There was optimism as the attack dominated, impetus when the top order responded, and rapturous celebration when the win was confirmed.
Polar Opposites: The Spectrum of Test Matches
The Melbourne has form with difficult wickets. In the past, a match there featured a strip with all the life of a a damp squib.
That fixture was a marathon, with minimal action and endless boredom. The two-day game and that previous match are polar opposites of the spectrum – both are not ideal, yet significance can be attached to each.
At this stage into the ongoing battle, it is the shortest games that will be most remembered in the memory.
"This isn't the end of the long game at all," observed a veteran. "The people who have been privileged to see these two days have been treated to some real entertainment. Different entertainment."
Baby Steps: Looking Ahead
In the lead-in to this Test, the skipper spoke like a man carrying the weight of the world on his back.
The squad responded for him, bringing back the positive demeanor to his persona.
Different players performed with key contributions. These are incremental gains, certainly not enough to secure long-term futures, but a foundation to develop from.
Ultimately, this MCG win takes its place among other historic performances in dead rubbers.
As the fans left into a glorious Melbourne evening, the players congregated on the field to begin their own festivities.
Enjoy the drink, lads. This victory was hard-fought.
