In a glass case on the third floor of the Melbourne Cricket Ground sits a vibrant pink outfit worn by Robbie Williams. His performance in front of a hundred thousand spectators was considered a success.
It's possible you enjoy his music. You might think he is the finest offering to music known to man. You might take a balanced view, admitting that some songs are belting while others are terrible.
The central idea is that entertainment can take many forms. You like what you like. There is no universal formula to produce literature or even five-day cricket.
The Incomparable Variety of The Test Format
Test cricket boasts incomparable variety. One struggles to think of another sport where the outcome is so reliant upon the environment.
The elements, the time of day, the cricket ball – the list is endless. Crucially is the wicket.
If Test cricket is an artistic pursuit, the pitch is the canvas on which the cricketers paint their masterpiece.
A Broken-Down Battle: The Melbourne Spectacle
The recent Melbourne match between the two sides was Test cricket cubism, the great game broken apart and reconstructed in abstract form.
This is not a defence of the pitch which produced a win and the second two-day Test of the series.
Leaving a thick layer on the wicket, resulting in 36 wickets being taken in less than a brief period, is not a balanced duel between bat and ball.
A Varied History: The Essence of Test Cricket
But any notion this was a inferior show, one that should be qualified as not a proper Test, is wide of the mark.
Test cricket is a varied portfolio, a long history and counting. Sometimes, as witnessed recently, the ball behaves unpredictably for the pace bowlers. Other times, it turns square on a dry surface. Sometimes, the pitch is flat as a pancake, other times it spits like a cobra.
The exciting finishes are all the more thrilling because of the patience devoted during quieter periods.
Problem Solving: The True Test
Specific conditions are accepted more readily than others.
The contention in Melbourne was that the contest was weighted unfairly towards the attack. That the best players were unable from showcasing their talents.
The format is about problem solving – reading the conditions and adjusting appropriately. The top two individual scores were made by acknowledged stars. One line-up was less disciplined than the other, and thus lost.
Sheer Celebration: For Those Who Waited
Go and inform the fans who have endured 18 winless matches that this lacked spectacle.
In a corner of the stadium, countless fans waved their flags and created an atmosphere, fostering a festive mood in a bastion of Australian cricket.
There was belief as the fielding side surged, impetus when the top order scored quickly, and pure joy when the victory was achieved.
Contrasting Examples: The Spectrum of Test Matches
The venue has a history with pitch problems. Eight years ago, a match there featured a strip with the character of a a damp squib.
That fixture was a slog, with limited drama and interminable tedium. The two-day game and that previous match are extreme ends of the scale – neither perfect, yet historical weight can be ascribed to each.
Four Tests into the Ashes contest, it is the quick finishes that will remain iconic in the memory.
"It's not the death of the long game at all," commented a veteran. "The people who have been privileged to see these short time have been treated to some real entertainment. Different entertainment."
Baby Steps: A Glimmer of Hope
In the lead-in to this Test, the skipper talked like a man carrying the weight of the world on his shoulders.
The squad delivered for him, restoring the joy to his face.
New faces performed with key contributions. These are incremental gains, hardly enough to guarantee long-term success, but something to build on.
Ultimately, this Melbourne victory is added to other memorable performances in dead rubbers.
As the fans slipped away into a beautiful night, the players gathered on the outfield to commence their own celebrations.
Savour the moment, boys. You've earned this one.
