In a showcase on the upper level of the iconic Melbourne stadium rests a neon pink ensemble donned by the entertainer. The show in front of a hundred thousand fans was hailed as a triumph.
It's possible you like the performer. Perhaps you believe he is the greatest gift to music in history. You might take a balanced view, acknowledging that some tracks are belting while others are awful.
The point being is that entertainment can take many forms. You like what you like. There is not a single method to create music or even the longest format.
The Incomparable Variety of The Long Game
The five-day game boasts incomparable variety. It is hard to think of another sport where the playing is so dictated by external factors.
The weather, the session, the cricket ball – the factors are countless. Most important is the wicket.
If the format is an artistic pursuit, the strip is the blank slate on which the cricketers craft their legacy.
An Abstract Contest: The Melbourne Spectacle
The Boxing Day fixture between Australia and England was the game deconstructed, the great game taken to pieces and reassembled in a bizarre shape.
This is not a justification of the surface which produced a win and the another short match of the Ashes battle.
Allowing 10mm of grass on the pitch, leading to 36 wickets falling in less than six sessions, is not an even battle between offense and defense.
A Rich Tapestry: The Core of Test Cricket
But any notion this was a lesser event, one that should be qualified as not a proper Test, is mistaken.
Test cricket is a diverse canvas, 2,615 parts and ongoing. Sometimes, as seen at the MCG, the ball behaves unpredictably for the seamers. Sometimes, it turns square on a spinning track. At other venues, the pitch is unresponsive, other times it explodes.
The exciting finishes are even more exciting because of the time committed in other matches.
Adaptation: The Real Challenge
Certain variables are tolerated more readily than others.
The argument in during the match was that the contest was weighted unfairly towards the attack. That the skilled individuals were hindered from showcasing their talents.
This level of cricket is about problem solving – interpreting the situation and adjusting appropriately. The best individual scores were made by recognized players. One side committed more errors than the other, and thus ended up second best.
Sheer Celebration: The Supporters' View
Go and inform the fans who have endured a long drought that this lacked spectacle.
Among the crowd of the MCG, countless fans waved their flags and sang their songs, generating a party atmosphere in a stronghold of sport.
There was optimism as the attack excelled, impetus when the top order responded, and unconditional love when the win was confirmed.
Polar Opposites: The Spectrum of Test Matches
The venue has form with pitch problems. Eight years ago, a Test there featured a pitch with the excitement of a a damp squib.
That match was a grind, with few wickets and endless boredom. This recent match and that slow Test are diametrically opposed points of the scale – one is not more the standard, yet significance can be attached to both.
Deep into the series into the Ashes contest, it is the two-day matches that will remain iconic in the collective consciousness.
"It's not the death of the format at all," commented a veteran. "The people who have been fortunate to see these two days have been given some real entertainment. A unique show."
Baby Steps: Looking Ahead
In the preparation to this Test, the skipper talked like a man carrying the heavy burden on his back.
The squad responded for him, reinstating the smile to his countenance.
New faces stepped up with vital performances. These are small positives, certainly not enough to secure long-term success, but a starting point to use as a platform.
In the end, this MCG win is added to other historic performances in meaningless games.
As the supporters left into a beautiful night, the players gathered on the field to commence their own celebrations.
Celebrate the win, lads. You've earned this one.
