In a glass case on the upper level of the MCG rests a electric pink ensemble worn by the pop star. His concert in front of a hundred thousand fans was hailed as a major hit.
You might not appreciate Robbie Williams. Maybe you feel he is the finest offering to music the world has ever seen. Alternatively, you may hold a middle ground, admitting that some tracks are belting while others are poor.
The central idea is that enjoyment can be delivered diversely. You like what you like. There is not a single method to produce art or even Test cricket.
The Incomparable Variety of The Test Format
The five-day game boasts peerless complexity. It is hard to think of another sport where the playing is so dictated by conditions.
The elements, the hour of play, the red ball – the factors are countless. Most important is the playing surface.
If the long game is an artistic pursuit, the strip is the canvas on which the athletes paint their masterpiece.
An Abstract Contest: The Fourth Test
The fourth Ashes Test between the two sides was Test cricket cubism, the great game dismantled and reconstructed in abstract form.
This is not a defence of the wicket which resulted in a win and the second two-day Test of the contest.
Allowing a thick layer on the surface, leading to 36 wickets falling in less than two days, is not an even battle between batter and bowler.
A Varied History: The Essence of Test Cricket
But any suggestion this was a lesser event, one that should be qualified as not a proper Test, is wide of the mark.
The format is a diverse canvas, a long history and still growing. At times, as seen at the MCG, the ball behaves unpredictably for the seamers. Sometimes, it turns square on a dry surface. Sometimes, the pitch is unresponsive, other times it explodes.
The thrillers are all the more thrilling because of the time committed elsewhere.
Adjustment: The True Test
Certain variables are tolerated more readily than others.
The debate in at the MCG was that the balance was weighted unfairly towards the bowlers. That the best players were prevented from playing their natural game.
Test cricket is about finding solutions – interpreting the conditions and responding effectively. The top two individual innings were made by acknowledged players. One line-up committed more errors than the other, and thus were defeated.
Sheer Celebration: The Fan Perspective
Go and inform the devotees who have experienced years of defeat that this lacked spectacle.
In one section of the stadium, thousands waved their flags and chanted, fostering a festive mood in a stronghold of national pride.
There was hope as the fielding side dominated, advantage when the top order responded, and pure joy when the result was secured.
Extreme Ends: The Range of Test Matches
The venue has form with difficult wickets. Eight years ago, a match there featured a wicket with the excitement of a pulled Christmas cracker.
That fixture was a slog, with few wickets and endless boredom. The latest encounter and that drawn affair are diametrically opposed points of the spectrum – both are not the standard, yet value can be ascribed to them.
Deep into the series into the current series, it is the two-day matches that will be most remembered in the memory.
"Far from being the death of the long game at all," said a former player. "Spectators who have been lucky enough to see these short time have been treated to some fantastic sport. Different entertainment."
Small Victories: Building for the Future
In the preparation to this match, the captain addressed the media like a man carrying the enormous pressure on his shoulders.
The squad responded for him, bringing back the joy to his face.
Emerging talents stepped up with crucial roles. These are baby steps, not nearly enough to ensure long-term success, but a foundation to develop from.
In the end, this Melbourne victory is added to other notable performances in meaningless games.
As the fans slipped away into a beautiful night, the players gathered on the field to start their own celebrations.
Celebrate the win, lads. This victory was hard-fought.
