In a showcase on the third floor of the MCG sits a electric pink ensemble worn by the entertainer. His show in front of a hundred thousand spectators was hailed as a major hit.
You might not enjoy the performer. You might think he is the ultimate present to music in history. You might take a middle ground, acknowledging that some songs are belting while others are terrible.
The key argument is that enjoyment can manifest in countless ways. You like what you like. There is no one way to craft music or even the longest format.
The Peerless Spectrum of Test Cricket
Test cricket boasts peerless complexity. One struggles to think of another sport where the outcome is so reliant upon the environment.
The elements, the hour of play, the red ball – the list is endless. Above all is the wicket.
If the long game is art, the strip is the blank slate on which the cricketers paint their masterpiece.
An Abstract Contest: The Fourth Test
The fourth Ashes Test between the old rivals was the game deconstructed, the established format broken apart and reconstructed in a bizarre shape.
Let's be clear, this isn't a justification of the pitch which produced a triumph and the second two-day Test of the contest.
Allowing excessive grass on the wicket, causing numerous dismissals being taken in less than six sessions, is not a balanced duel between offense and defense.
A Diverse Legacy: The Core of Test Cricket
But any idea this was a inferior show, one that should be marked with an asterisk as illegitimate, is incorrect.
The format is a rich tapestry, over two thousand matches and counting. At times, as seen at the MCG, the cricket ball does all sorts for the seamers. In contrast, it grips and turns on a spinning track. At other venues, the pitch is unresponsive, other times it spits like a cobra.
The close matches are even more exciting owing to the patience made elsewhere.
Adaptation: The Core Skill
Certain variables are tolerated more freely than others.
The argument in at the MCG was that the equilibrium was skewed excessively towards the fielding side. That the skilled individuals were unable from playing their natural game.
Test cricket is about finding solutions – reading the wicket and adjusting appropriately. The best individual contributions were made by world-class batters. One side made more mistakes than the other, and thus ended up second best.
Unbridled Joy: For Those Who Waited
Attempt to convince the supporters who have experienced 18 winless matches that this wasn't compelling.
In a corner of the stadium, a sea of people celebrated and chanted, generating a festive mood in a heartland of Australian cricket.
There was belief as the fielding side excelled, momentum when the top order scored quickly, and rapturous celebration when the victory was confirmed.
Polar Opposites: The Variety of Test Matches
The Melbourne has form with controversial surfaces. Previously, a Test there featured a strip with all the life of a a non-event.
That fixture was a slog, with minimal action and endless boredom. The two-day game and that drawn affair are extreme ends of the spectrum – neither the standard, yet historical weight can be ascribed to each.
Four Tests into the Ashes contest, it is the two-day matches that will live longest in the collective consciousness.
"This isn't the death of the format at all," said a veteran. "The people who have been fortunate to see these 48 hours have been given some real entertainment. An unusual spectacle."
Small Victories: Looking Ahead
In the build-up to this Test, the leader addressed the media like a man carrying the weight of the world on his shoulders.
The team delivered for him, reinstating the positive demeanor to his face.
Emerging talents performed with key contributions. These are baby steps, not nearly enough to secure long-term success, but a starting point to build on.
Ultimately, this triumph takes its place among other historic performances in meaningless games.
As the fans slipped away into a stunning sunset, the players gathered on the outfield to start their own enjoyment.
Enjoy the drink, lads. You've earned this one.
