Displayed inside a display cabinet on the upper level of the MCG is housed a electric pink ensemble performed in by the entertainer. The concert in front of 100,024 attendees was seen as a triumph.
Perhaps you don't like Robbie Williams. Perhaps you believe he is the ultimate present to music known to man. Alternatively, you may hold a balanced view, conceding that some tracks are belting while others are poor.
The key argument is that amusement can take many forms. Preferences differ. There is not a single method to produce literature or even five-day cricket.
The Peerless Spectrum of Test Cricket
The five-day game boasts incomparable variety. It is hard to think of another sport where the playing is so dictated by the environment.
The weather, the session, the ball – the factors are countless. Above all is the pitch.
If the format is an artistic pursuit, the wicket is the blank slate on which the players create their art.
A Broken-Down Battle: The Fourth Test
The fourth Ashes Test between Australia and England was an abstract version of cricket, the great game taken to pieces and reconstructed in an unusual manner.
Let's be clear, this isn't a endorsement of the pitch which yielded a win and the second two-day Test of the Ashes battle.
Leaving a thick layer on the pitch, resulting in 36 wickets being taken in less than six sessions, 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 mistaken.
The format is a rich tapestry, 2,615 parts and still growing. On occasion, like in Melbourne, the cricket ball moves excessively for the seamers. Sometimes, it grips and turns on a spinning track. At other venues, the pitch is dead, other times it explodes.
The exciting finishes are particularly captivating owing to the patience committed in other matches.
Adaptation: The Core Skill
Some factors are accepted more readily than others.
The contention in at the MCG was that the contest was skewed excessively towards the bowlers. That the skilled individuals were prevented from playing their natural game.
The format is about adapting to challenges – interpreting the situation and adapting effectively. The best individual scores were made by recognized players. One side made more mistakes than the other, and thus ended up second best.
Sheer Celebration: The Fan Perspective
Try telling the fans who have endured years of defeat that this lacked spectacle.
In a corner of the MCG, a sea of people waved their flags and created an atmosphere, generating a festive mood in a stronghold of sport.
There was hope as the attack dominated, impetus when batters scored quickly, and unconditional love when the win was secured.
Contrasting Examples: The Variety of Test Matches
The Melbourne has form with controversial surfaces. Eight years ago, a Test there featured a pitch with the excitement of a a non-event.
That fixture was a grind, with few wickets and slow play. This recent match and that previous match are diametrically opposed points of the scale – neither perfect, yet historical weight can be found in them.
Four Tests into the Ashes contest, it is the two-day matches that will live longest in the memory.
"It's not the demise of Test cricket at all," commented a former player. "Fans who have been lucky enough to see these 48 hours have been experienced some real entertainment. An unusual spectacle."
Baby Steps: Looking Ahead
In the lead-in to this Test, the skipper spoke like a man carrying the enormous pressure on his back.
The squad protected him, reinstating the smile to his persona.
Emerging talents performed with key contributions. These are small positives, not nearly enough to secure long-term stability, but something to build on.
Ultimately, this MCG win takes its place among other notable performances in meaningless games.
As the fans slipped away into a glorious Melbourne evening, the squad congregated on the field to commence their own festivities.
Enjoy the drink, boys. It's well deserved.
