Displayed inside a display cabinet on the elevated floor of the iconic Melbourne stadium is housed a vibrant pink outfit donned by the entertainer. His show in front of 100,024 spectators was hailed as a success.
You might not appreciate Robbie Williams. Perhaps you believe he is the greatest gift to music in history. You might take a middle ground, admitting that some tracks are fantastic while others are awful.
The point being is that entertainment can manifest in countless ways. Tastes vary. There is not a single method to craft literature or even the longest format.
The Peerless Spectrum of The Test Format
The traditional format boasts incomparable variety. It's difficult to think of another sport where the outcome is so dictated by conditions.
The weather, the session, the ball – the list is endless. Above all is the wicket.
If Test cricket is an artistic pursuit, the strip is the canvas on which the players craft their legacy.
An Abstract Contest: The MCG Match
The Boxing Day fixture between the two sides was Test cricket cubism, the traditional sport taken to pieces and reconstructed in abstract form.
Let's be clear, this isn't a justification of the pitch which resulted in a win and the another short match of the Ashes battle.
Leaving excessive grass on the surface, causing 36 wickets tumbling in less than two days, is not a balanced duel between bat and ball.
A Diverse Legacy: The Nature of Test Cricket
But any idea this was a inferior show, one that should be footnoted as not a proper Test, is incorrect.
The format is a rich tapestry, 2,615 parts and still growing. At times, as witnessed recently, the ball behaves unpredictably for the seamers. Other times, it grips and turns on a dust bowl. At other venues, the pitch is flat as a pancake, other times it spits like a cobra.
The exciting finishes are particularly captivating because of the patience made during quieter periods.
Adaptation: The True Test
Some factors are accepted more freely than others.
The argument in Melbourne was that the contest was skewed excessively towards the bowlers. That the skilled individuals were prevented from playing their natural game.
Test cricket is about finding solutions – assessing the wicket and responding effectively. The two highest individual innings were made by recognized players. One team made more mistakes than the other, and thus lost.
Pure Elation: The Supporters' View
Try telling the devotees who have endured a long drought that this wasn't compelling.
Among the crowd of the ground, a sea of people waved their flags and created an atmosphere, producing a festive mood in a stronghold of sport.
There was belief as the fielding side excelled, momentum when the top order responded, and pure joy when the win was secured.
Extreme Ends: The Range of Test Matches
The venue has a history with difficult wickets. Previously, a match there featured a strip with all the life of a a damp squib.
That match was a slog, with minimal action and endless boredom. The latest encounter and that previous match are extreme ends of the spectrum – one is not more ideal, yet historical weight can be attached to them.
Deep into the series into the ongoing battle, it is the two-day matches that will remain iconic in the memory.
"Far from being the demise of Test cricket at all," commented a former player. "The people who have been privileged to see these 48 hours have been treated to some real entertainment. Different entertainment."
Small Victories: Looking Ahead
In the preparation to this Test, the skipper addressed the media like a man carrying the weight of the world on his mind.
The team responded for him, restoring the smile to his countenance.
Emerging talents stepped up with key contributions. These are baby steps, hardly enough to ensure long-term futures, but something to develop from.
In the end, this Melbourne victory is added to other historic performances in meaningless games.
As the supporters departed into a glorious Melbourne evening, the squad assembled on the turf to begin their own enjoyment.
Enjoy the drink, men. This victory was hard-fought.
