In a showcase on the third floor of the Melbourne Cricket Ground sits a neon pink suit donned by the entertainer. His performance in front of a massive crowd of attendees was seen as a major hit.
It's possible you appreciate Robbie Williams. Perhaps you believe he is the greatest gift to music known to man. You might take a balanced view, admitting that some tracks are excellent while others are terrible.
The central idea is that entertainment can be delivered diversely. You like what you like. There is no universal formula to craft art or even five-day cricket.
The Peerless Spectrum of The Long Game
The traditional format boasts incomparable variety. One struggles to think of another sport where the outcome is so dependent on the environment.
The weather, the session, the ball – the variables are numerous. Above all is the playing surface.
If Test cricket is a form of art, the wicket is the foundation on which the athletes craft their legacy.
An Abstract Contest: The Fourth Test
The Boxing Day fixture between the old rivals was the game deconstructed, the established format dismantled and reconstructed in a bizarre shape.
This is not a defence of the surface which resulted in a triumph and the another sub-three-day finish of the Ashes battle.
Leaving a thick layer on the pitch, resulting in numerous dismissals falling in less than six sessions, is not an even battle between offense and defense.
A Rich Tapestry: The Essence of Test Cricket
But any suggestion this was a lesser event, one that should be qualified as not a proper Test, is wide of the mark.
Test cricket is a varied portfolio, over two thousand matches and still growing. On occasion, as seen at the MCG, the ball does all sorts for the pace bowlers. In contrast, it spins sharply on a dust bowl. Sometimes, the pitch is flat as a pancake, other times it spits like a cobra.
The close matches are even more exciting because of the investment made in other matches.
Adjustment: The True Test
Specific conditions are tolerated more freely than others.
The debate in at the MCG was that the equilibrium was tipped too far towards the fielding side. That the skilled individuals were prevented from demonstrating their skill.
This level of cricket is about finding solutions – interpreting the situation and adapting accordingly. The best individual scores were made by acknowledged players. One team committed more errors than the other, and thus were defeated.
Pure Elation: The Supporters' View
Try telling the devotees who have experienced 18 winless matches that this lacked spectacle.
Among the crowd of the MCG, a sea of people waved their flags and created an atmosphere, producing a party atmosphere in a bastion of Australian cricket.
There was optimism as the bowlers surged, impetus when players fought back, and unconditional love when the result was secured.
Extreme Ends: The Variety of Test Matches
The Melbourne has form with difficult wickets. Eight years ago, a match there featured a wicket with the excitement of a a damp squib.
That contest was a grind, with few wickets and interminable tedium. The latest encounter and that slow Test are extreme ends of the scale – both are not ideal, yet value can be found in both.
Deep into the series into the current series, it is the two-day matches that will be most remembered in the history books.
"This isn't the demise of the long game at all," commented a veteran. "Fans who have been privileged to see these two days have been experienced some fantastic sport. Different entertainment."
Baby Steps: Looking Ahead
In the build-up to this Test, the captain talked like a man carrying the heavy burden on his shoulders.
The players delivered for him, restoring the positive demeanor to his countenance.
Emerging talents performed with vital performances. These are baby steps, not nearly enough to guarantee long-term stability, but a starting point to use as a platform.
At the very least, this triumph takes its place among other notable performances in dead rubbers.
As the crowd left into a stunning sunset, the team congregated on the turf to start their own enjoyment.
Enjoy the drink, boys. You've earned this one.
