Within a display cabinet on the upper level of the MCG is housed a neon pink outfit performed in by the entertainer. His concert in front of a massive crowd of spectators was hailed as a success.
You might not like his music. Maybe you feel he is the ultimate present to music the world has ever seen. Alternatively, you may hold a middle ground, admitting that some hits are fantastic while others are terrible.
The point being is that amusement can take many forms. Tastes vary. There is not a single method to craft art or even Test cricket.
The Incomparable Variety of Test Cricket
The traditional format boasts incomparable variety. One struggles to think of another sport where the playing is so reliant upon conditions.
The weather, the hour of play, the cricket ball – the factors are countless. Crucially is the playing surface.
If the format is a form of art, the wicket is the canvas on which the cricketers paint their masterpiece.
A Test of Cubism: The Melbourne Spectacle
The fourth Ashes Test between Australia and England was the game deconstructed, the great game taken to pieces and stuck back together in abstract form.
This is not a justification of the surface which produced a win and the another sub-three-day finish of the series.
Allowing a thick layer on the surface, causing numerous dismissals falling in less than two days, is not a balanced duel between bat and ball.
A Rich Tapestry: The Essence of Test Cricket
But any notion this was a lesser event, one that should be marked with an asterisk as not a proper Test, is incorrect.
The format is a diverse canvas, 2,615 parts and ongoing. On occasion, as witnessed recently, the cricket ball moves excessively for the seamers. In contrast, it turns square on a dust bowl. At other venues, the pitch is dead, other times it explodes.
The close matches are particularly captivating because of the time made during quieter periods.
Problem Solving: The Real Challenge
Specific conditions are tolerated more readily than others.
The argument in during the match was that the equilibrium was tipped too far towards the attack. That the best players were hindered from playing their natural game.
The format is about finding solutions – assessing the conditions and adapting appropriately. The best individual contributions were made by world-class players. One side was less disciplined than the other, and thus were defeated.
Unbridled Joy: The Supporters' View
Attempt to convince the devotees who have experienced years of defeat that this was not entertaining.
Among the crowd of the stadium, a sea of people waved their flags and chanted, generating a festive mood in a stronghold of Australian cricket.
There was hope as the attack dominated, advantage when the top order responded, and rapturous celebration when the win was secured.
Polar Opposites: The Spectrum of Test Matches
The MCG has form with difficult wickets. Eight years ago, a match there featured a strip with the excitement of a pulled Christmas cracker.
That fixture was a marathon, with limited drama and endless boredom. The latest encounter and that previous match are diametrically opposed points of the range – one is not more perfect, yet significance can be found in each.
At this stage into the current series, it is the two-day matches that will remain iconic in the memory.
"This isn't the demise of the format at all," said a former player. "The people who have been lucky enough to see these 48 hours have been experienced some genuine drama. An unusual spectacle."
Baby Steps: A Glimmer of Hope
In the lead-in to this Test, the skipper talked like a man carrying the enormous pressure on his shoulders.
The team responded for him, restoring the joy to his persona.
Emerging talents stepped up with crucial roles. These are small positives, certainly not enough to ensure long-term success, but a starting point to use as a platform.
At the very least, this triumph joins other notable performances in similar circumstances.
As the fans left into a stunning sunset, the players assembled on the turf to begin their own festivities.
Celebrate the win, men. It's well deserved.
