Within a glass case on the third floor of the MCG sits a neon pink suit performed in by Robbie Williams. His performance in front of a hundred thousand attendees was hailed as a major hit.
You might not enjoy Robbie Williams. Maybe you feel he is the ultimate present to music in history. Alternatively, you may hold a reasonable stance, admitting that some tracks are fantastic while others are terrible.
The central idea is that entertainment can take many forms. Tastes vary. There is no one way to craft art or even Test cricket.
The Incomparable Variety of The Long Game
Test cricket boasts incomparable variety. It's difficult to think of another sport where the playing is so dictated by the environment.
The elements, the hour of play, the ball – the factors are countless. Crucially is the pitch.
If the format is art, the strip is the blank slate on which the athletes create their art.
A Test of Cubism: The MCG Match
The Boxing Day fixture between Australia and England was Test cricket cubism, the traditional sport taken to pieces and stuck back together in abstract form.
Let's be clear, this isn't a endorsement of the pitch which resulted in a win and the another short match of the Ashes battle.
Leaving a thick layer on the pitch, resulting in numerous dismissals tumbling in less than two days, is not a balanced duel between bat and ball.
A Varied History: The Nature of Test Cricket
But any notion this was a lesser event, one that should be qualified as inauthentic, is mistaken.
The long game is a diverse canvas, a long history and still growing. On occasion, as witnessed recently, the cricket ball does all sorts for the fast men. Sometimes, it grips and turns on a spinning track. Sometimes, the pitch is unresponsive, other times it spits like a cobra.
The close matches are all the more thrilling because of the patience devoted in other matches.
Adaptation: The Real Challenge
Certain variables are embraced more readily than others.
The argument in at the MCG was that the balance was tipped too far towards the attack. That the best players were prevented from playing their natural game.
This level of cricket is about finding solutions – interpreting the wicket and responding appropriately. The two highest individual contributions were made by recognized stars. One line-up made more mistakes than the other, and thus ended up second best.
Unbridled Joy: For Those Who Waited
Go and inform the devotees who have experienced 18 winless matches that this was not entertaining.
Among the crowd of the ground, a sea of people made noise and chanted, generating a party atmosphere in a heartland of sport.
There was belief as the bowlers surged, impetus when batters scored quickly, and pure joy when the win was achieved.
Extreme Ends: The Variety of Test Matches
The MCG has form with controversial surfaces. Previously, a match there featured a pitch with all the life of a a damp squib.
That match was a slog, with minimal action and endless boredom. This recent match and that previous match are diametrically opposed points of the range – neither perfect, yet historical weight can be found in both.
At this stage into the current series, it is the shortest games that will be most remembered in the history books.
"It's not the end of the long game at all," commented a former player. "Fans who have been fortunate to see these short time have been given some real entertainment. A unique show."
Baby Steps: A Glimmer of Hope
In the lead-in to this Test, the leader spoke like a man carrying the weight of the world on his mind.
The players protected him, reinstating the smile to his countenance.
Different players performed with vital performances. These are incremental gains, not nearly enough to guarantee long-term futures, but something to use as a platform.
In the end, this Melbourne victory joins other notable performances in similar circumstances.
As the supporters slipped away into a stunning sunset, the players gathered on the field to start their own festivities.
Savour the moment, boys. You've earned this one.
