Displayed inside a glass case on the third floor of the Melbourne Cricket Ground sits a electric pink ensemble donned by Robbie Williams. His concert in front of a hundred thousand spectators was considered a major hit.
You might not enjoy the performer. Maybe you feel he is the finest offering to music the world has ever seen. You might take a reasonable stance, conceding that some hits are belting while others are terrible.
The key argument is that enjoyment can take many forms. Preferences differ. There is no universal formula to create art or even Test cricket.
The Incomparable Variety of Test Cricket
The five-day game boasts unrivalled depth. One struggles to think of another sport where the playing is so reliant upon the environment.
The climate, the hour of play, the ball – the variables are numerous. Most important is the pitch.
If the format is a form of art, the wicket is the foundation on which the players create their art.
A Test of Cubism: The Melbourne Spectacle
The Boxing Day fixture between Australia and England was Test cricket cubism, the established format taken to pieces and reconstructed in abstract form.
It must be stated this is not a endorsement of the pitch which resulted in a victory and the second two-day Test of the Ashes battle.
Allowing excessive grass on the surface, causing numerous dismissals falling in less than six sessions, is not a balanced duel between batter and bowler.
A Varied History: The Core of Test Cricket
But any suggestion this was a inferior show, one that should be qualified as inauthentic, is mistaken.
Test cricket is a rich tapestry, 2,615 parts and counting. On occasion, as seen at the MCG, the ball behaves unpredictably for the pace bowlers. In contrast, it turns square on a dust bowl. Sometimes, the pitch is flat as a pancake, other times it spits like a cobra.
The thrillers are particularly captivating owing to the time devoted in other matches.
Adaptation: The Core Skill
Specific conditions are embraced more freely than others.
The debate in during the match was that the balance was tipped too far towards the fielding side. That the best players were hindered from playing their natural game.
This level of cricket is about finding solutions – assessing the wicket and adjusting accordingly. The two highest individual scores were made by world-class stars. One team was less disciplined than the other, and thus were defeated.
Sheer Celebration: The Supporters' View
Try telling the fans who have endured 18 winless matches that this was not entertaining.
Among the crowd of the MCG, countless fans made noise and created an atmosphere, fostering a festive mood in a bastion of Australian cricket.
There was belief as the bowlers surged, advantage when players fought back, and unconditional love when the result was achieved.
Polar Opposites: The Spectrum of Test Matches
The Melbourne has a history with difficult wickets. Previously, a match there featured a wicket with the excitement of a a non-event.
That match was a slog, with few wickets and endless boredom. The latest encounter and that previous match are diametrically opposed points of the scale – both are not ideal, yet value can be found in them.
At this stage into the current series, it is the quick finishes that will live longest in the memory.
"It's not the demise of the format at all," observed a past champion. "Fans who have been fortunate to see these two days have been given some genuine drama. A unique show."
Baby Steps: Looking Ahead
In the lead-in to this match, the leader talked like a man carrying the weight of the world on his shoulders.
The squad delivered for him, reinstating the positive demeanor to his persona.
Different players performed with crucial roles. These are baby steps, certainly not enough to ensure long-term futures, but something to use as a platform.
In the end, this Melbourne victory joins other historic performances in dead rubbers.
As the supporters left into a stunning sunset, the squad assembled on the field to commence their own festivities.
Celebrate the win, lads. This victory was hard-fought.
