Within a glass case on the upper level of the MCG sits a electric pink ensemble donned by the entertainer. His show in front of a hundred thousand attendees was hailed as a major hit.
Perhaps you don't appreciate the performer. You might think he is the finest offering to music the world has ever seen. Or you could adopt a reasonable stance, acknowledging that some tracks are fantastic while others are awful.
The key argument is that amusement can be delivered diversely. Preferences differ. There is not a single method to produce literature or even Test cricket.
The Unrivalled Depth of The Test Format
The five-day game boasts unrivalled depth. It is hard to think of another sport where the playing is so reliant upon the environment.
The weather, the hour of play, the red ball – the factors are countless. Crucially is the pitch.
If the long game is a form of art, the pitch is the canvas on which the players paint their masterpiece.
A Test of Cubism: The Melbourne Spectacle
The recent Melbourne match between the two sides was Test cricket cubism, the established format dismantled and reassembled in an unusual manner.
Let's be clear, this isn't a defence of the surface which produced a win and the another sub-three-day finish of the contest.
Allowing excessive grass on the wicket, causing 36 wickets 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 inferior show, one that should be marked with an asterisk as not a proper Test, is wide of the mark.
Test cricket is a diverse canvas, 2,615 parts and counting. Sometimes, as witnessed recently, the cricket ball does all sorts for the pace bowlers. In contrast, it grips and turns on a spinning track. At other venues, the pitch is dead, other times it bounces unevenly.
The exciting finishes are even more exciting owing to the patience made during quieter periods.
Adaptation: The Core Skill
Some factors are embraced more freely than others.
The debate in at the MCG was that the balance was skewed excessively towards the bowlers. That the best players were unable from demonstrating their skill.
Test cricket is about finding solutions – reading the conditions and responding effectively. The best individual scores were made by acknowledged batters. One team was less disciplined than the other, and thus were defeated.
Pure Elation: The Fan Perspective
Go and inform the devotees who have suffered a long drought that this was not entertaining.
In one section of the ground, thousands made noise and created an atmosphere, generating a carnival vibe in a stronghold of national pride.
There was hope as the fielding side surged, advantage when the top order fought back, and unconditional love when the victory was secured.
Extreme Ends: The Spectrum of Test Matches
The venue has a history with difficult wickets. In the past, a game there featured a pitch with the excitement of a pulled Christmas cracker.
That fixture was a grind, with minimal action and slow play. The latest encounter and that slow Test are extreme ends of the spectrum – one is not more perfect, yet significance can be found in both.
At this stage into the Ashes contest, it is the shortest games that will remain iconic in the memory.
"This isn't the death of Test cricket at all," observed a past champion. "Spectators who have been fortunate to see these two days have been given some fantastic sport. An unusual spectacle."
Baby Steps: Building for the Future
In the lead-in to this match, the leader talked like a man carrying the enormous pressure on his back.
The team responded for him, bringing back the smile to his face.
New faces performed with vital performances. These are incremental gains, certainly not enough to guarantee long-term stability, but a starting point to use as a platform.
Ultimately, this MCG win is added to other notable performances in meaningless games.
As the fans slipped away into a beautiful night, the team congregated on the turf to begin their own celebrations.
Enjoy the drink, men. This victory was hard-fought.
