Within a showcase on the third floor of the iconic Melbourne stadium rests a neon pink suit worn by the pop star. The performance in front of a hundred thousand spectators was seen as a major hit.
Perhaps you don't like the performer. Maybe you feel he is the ultimate present to music in history. Alternatively, you may hold a balanced view, conceding that some hits are excellent while others are awful.
The central idea is that enjoyment can manifest in countless ways. Tastes vary. There is no universal formula to produce literature or even Test cricket.
The Unrivalled Depth of The Long Game
Test cricket boasts peerless complexity. One struggles to think of another sport where the outcome is so dictated by external factors.
The climate, the hour of play, the ball – the factors are countless. Crucially is the playing surface.
If Test cricket is an artistic pursuit, the wicket is the blank slate on which the cricketers paint their masterpiece.
An Abstract Contest: The Fourth Test
The fourth Ashes Test between the old rivals was Test cricket cubism, the great game broken apart and reconstructed in an unusual manner.
This is not a endorsement of the wicket which produced a triumph and the second two-day Test of the contest.
Allowing excessive grass on the surface, causing numerous dismissals being taken in less than six sessions, is not a fair contest between bat and ball.
A Diverse Legacy: The Core of Test Cricket
But any idea this was a diminished spectacle, one that should be qualified as inauthentic, is wide of the mark.
The format is a diverse canvas, over two thousand matches and still growing. Sometimes, like in Melbourne, the cricket ball moves excessively for the seamers. Sometimes, it spins sharply on a spinning track. Sometimes, the pitch is dead, other times it explodes.
The thrillers are all the more thrilling owing to the investment devoted in other matches.
Adjustment: The Real Challenge
Certain variables are embraced more easily than others.
The contention in at the MCG was that the contest was skewed excessively towards the attack. That the skilled individuals were hindered from demonstrating their skill.
This level of cricket is about finding solutions – interpreting the wicket and responding effectively. The two highest individual scores were made by acknowledged players. One line-up was less disciplined than the other, and thus ended up second best.
Sheer Celebration: For Those Who Waited
Attempt to convince the supporters who have experienced a long drought that this was not entertaining.
In one section of the stadium, a sea of people waved their flags and sang their songs, fostering a party atmosphere in a bastion of Australian cricket.
There was belief as the bowlers surged, momentum when players responded, and unconditional love when the result was confirmed.
Extreme Ends: The Variety of Test Matches
The MCG has previous experience with controversial surfaces. Previously, a game there featured a strip with the excitement of a a non-event.
That fixture was a slog, with minimal action and interminable tedium. The latest encounter and that drawn affair are diametrically opposed points of the scale – neither ideal, yet value can be attached to them.
Four Tests into the Ashes contest, it is the shortest games that will be most remembered in the history books.
"Far from being the death of the format at all," commented a veteran. "Fans who have been fortunate to see these 48 hours have been given some real entertainment. Different entertainment."
Baby Steps: A Glimmer of Hope
In the build-up to this Test, the skipper spoke like a man carrying the heavy burden on his back.
The players delivered for him, restoring the joy to his face.
Different players stepped up with crucial roles. These are baby steps, hardly enough to ensure long-term futures, but a starting point to develop from.
In the end, this triumph joins other notable performances in meaningless games.
As the fans left into a stunning sunset, the squad gathered on the turf to begin their own celebrations.
Enjoy the drink, men. You've earned this one.
