In a display cabinet on the upper level of the MCG rests a electric pink suit donned by the entertainer. His concert in front of 100,024 attendees was seen as a success.
You might not enjoy his music. Perhaps you believe he is the ultimate present to music in history. Alternatively, you may hold a middle ground, admitting that some hits are fantastic while others are awful.
The point being is that entertainment can take many forms. You like what you like. There is no universal formula to create literature or even five-day cricket.
The Unrivalled Depth of The Test Format
Test cricket boasts peerless complexity. One struggles to think of another sport where the playing is so reliant upon external factors.
The climate, the time of day, the cricket ball – the variables are numerous. Above all is the wicket.
If Test cricket is art, the wicket is the foundation on which the players paint their masterpiece.
An Abstract Contest: The Fourth Test
The recent Melbourne match between the two sides was an abstract version of cricket, the great game dismantled and stuck back together in a bizarre shape.
It must be stated this is not a defence of the wicket which yielded a triumph and the second two-day Test of the Ashes battle.
Allowing a thick layer on the pitch, leading to 36 wickets tumbling in less than two days, is not a fair contest between bat and ball.
A Varied History: The Nature of Test Cricket
But any idea this was a lesser event, one that should be footnoted as illegitimate, is wide of the mark.
The long game is a rich tapestry, a long history and ongoing. Sometimes, as seen at the MCG, the ball moves excessively for the pace bowlers. Other times, it spins sharply on a dust bowl. At other venues, the pitch is unresponsive, other times it bounces unevenly.
The close matches are particularly captivating because of the time devoted elsewhere.
Problem Solving: The Real Challenge
Some factors are embraced more easily than others.
The argument in Melbourne was that the contest was tipped too far towards the bowlers. That the top batters were prevented from demonstrating their skill.
Test cricket is about finding solutions – reading the situation and adjusting accordingly. The top two individual innings were made by world-class players. One side made more mistakes than the other, and thus ended up second best.
Pure Elation: For Those Who Waited
Try telling the devotees who have endured a long drought that this wasn't compelling.
In a corner of the ground, thousands made noise and sang their songs, fostering a carnival vibe in a stronghold of Australian cricket.
There was hope as the fielding side dominated, momentum when the top order fought back, and pure joy when the result was confirmed.
Contrasting Examples: The Range of Test Matches
The Melbourne has a history with pitch problems. In the past, a match there featured a wicket with the excitement of a a non-event.
That fixture was a marathon, with limited drama and interminable tedium. The latest encounter and that previous match are diametrically opposed points of the scale – one is not more the standard, yet value can be attached to both.
Four Tests into the current series, it is the two-day matches that will be most remembered in the collective consciousness.
"It's not the end of the format at all," observed a former player. "The people who have been lucky enough to see these two days have been treated to some genuine drama. A unique show."
Signs of Progress: Building for the Future
In the preparation to this Test, the leader spoke like a man carrying the heavy burden on his shoulders.
The squad responded for him, bringing back the positive demeanor to his persona.
New faces stepped up with vital performances. These are incremental gains, certainly not enough to secure long-term futures, but something to use as a platform.
Ultimately, this triumph is added to other memorable performances in meaningless games.
As the crowd departed into a stunning sunset, the players congregated on the outfield to start their own celebrations.
Enjoy the drink, boys. It's well deserved.
