Displayed inside a display cabinet on the upper level of the iconic Melbourne stadium sits a vibrant pink suit performed in by the pop star. The performance in front of a massive crowd of attendees was seen as a success.
You might not like Robbie Williams. You might think he is the greatest gift to music in history. You might take a balanced view, admitting that some songs are belting while others are terrible.
The central idea is that enjoyment can take many forms. You like what you like. There is no universal formula to produce music or even Test cricket.
The Unrivalled Depth of Test Cricket
Test cricket boasts unrivalled depth. It's difficult to think of another sport where the contest is so reliant upon external factors.
The climate, the session, the ball – the factors are countless. Above all is the wicket.
If the long game is an artistic pursuit, the strip is the canvas on which the athletes craft their legacy.
An Abstract Contest: The MCG Match
The Boxing Day fixture between the two sides was the game deconstructed, the traditional sport taken to pieces and reassembled in an unusual manner.
This is not a endorsement of the surface which resulted in a win and the another sub-three-day finish of the contest.
Having a thick layer on the pitch, leading to a cascade of wickets falling in less than two days, is not a fair contest between batter and bowler.
A Rich Tapestry: The Nature of Test Cricket
But any idea this was a inferior show, one that should be marked with an asterisk as inauthentic, is wide of the mark.
The format is a diverse canvas, a long history and still growing. At times, like in Melbourne, the cricket ball behaves unpredictably for the pace bowlers. Other times, it turns square on a spinning track. At other venues, the pitch is dead, other times it explodes.
The close matches are particularly captivating because of the investment made during quieter periods.
Adjustment: The Real Challenge
Specific conditions are accepted more freely than others.
The contention in during the match was that the balance was tipped too far towards the attack. That the best players were hindered from demonstrating their skill.
The format is about finding solutions – reading the wicket and adapting effectively. The best individual contributions were made by world-class batters. One line-up committed more errors than the other, and thus were defeated.
Sheer Celebration: The Fan Perspective
Go and inform the fans who have suffered 18 winless matches that this lacked spectacle.
In one section of the stadium, countless fans celebrated and chanted, fostering a party atmosphere in a stronghold of national pride.
There was optimism as the attack excelled, momentum when batters responded, and pure joy when the win was confirmed.
Extreme Ends: The Range of Test Matches
The venue has previous experience with pitch problems. In the past, a game there featured a pitch with the excitement of a a damp squib.
That fixture was a slog, with few wickets and endless boredom. This recent match and that previous match are polar opposites of the scale – both are not ideal, yet historical weight can be ascribed to each.
At this stage into the current series, it is the shortest games that will live longest in the collective consciousness.
"This isn't the end of the long game at all," observed a former player. "The people who have been privileged to see these 48 hours have been given some real entertainment. An unusual spectacle."
Signs of Progress: Looking Ahead
In the lead-in to this Test, the skipper talked like a man carrying the weight of the world on his mind.
The squad responded for him, reinstating the joy to his countenance.
New faces stepped up with key contributions. These are baby steps, hardly enough to secure long-term futures, but a starting point to develop from.
Ultimately, this MCG win joins other notable performances in dead rubbers.
As the crowd left into a stunning sunset, the squad gathered on the field to begin their own enjoyment.
Savour the moment, men. This victory was hard-fought.
