Within a display cabinet on the third floor of the MCG rests a electric pink suit donned by the pop star. The concert in front of 100,024 attendees was seen as a major hit.
You might not enjoy Robbie Williams. Maybe you feel he is the finest offering to music the world has ever seen. Alternatively, you may hold a middle ground, acknowledging that some tracks are excellent while others are terrible.
The point being is that enjoyment can be delivered diversely. You like what you like. There is no one way to create literature or even the longest format.
The Incomparable Variety of The Test Format
The traditional format boasts incomparable variety. One struggles to think of another sport where the playing is so dictated by external factors.
The elements, the time of day, the cricket ball – the factors are countless. Crucially is the pitch.
If the long game is a form of art, the strip is the blank slate on which the players craft their legacy.
A Broken-Down Battle: The MCG Match
The fourth Ashes Test between the old rivals was Test cricket cubism, the great game taken to pieces and stuck back together in a bizarre shape.
Let's be clear, this isn't a justification of the surface which yielded a win and the another short match of the Ashes battle.
Leaving 10mm of grass on the pitch, leading to 36 wickets being taken in less than six sessions, is not a balanced duel between bat and ball.
A Diverse Legacy: The Nature of Test Cricket
But any notion this was a lesser event, one that should be marked with an asterisk as illegitimate, is mistaken.
The long game is a varied portfolio, a long history and ongoing. At times, as seen at the MCG, the cricket ball does all sorts for the seamers. In contrast, it turns square on a spinning track. At other venues, the pitch is flat as a pancake, other times it spits like a cobra.
The close matches are particularly captivating owing to the patience committed elsewhere.
Adaptation: The Real Challenge
Some factors are accepted more easily than others.
The debate in Melbourne was that the equilibrium was tipped too far towards the bowlers. That the top batters were hindered from demonstrating their skill.
This level of cricket is about problem solving – reading the conditions and adapting accordingly. The top two individual scores were made by acknowledged stars. One line-up committed more errors than the other, and thus were defeated.
Pure Elation: The Supporters' View
Go and inform the devotees who have experienced 18 winless matches that this wasn't compelling.
In one section of the MCG, thousands waved their flags and created an atmosphere, producing a festive mood in a stronghold of Australian cricket.
There was belief as the bowlers surged, impetus when the top order scored quickly, and rapturous celebration when the victory was achieved.
Extreme Ends: The Variety of Test Matches
The venue has a history with pitch problems. Eight years ago, a Test there featured a strip with the character of a pulled Christmas cracker.
That fixture was a slog, with limited drama and interminable tedium. The latest encounter and that drawn affair are polar opposites of the scale – neither perfect, yet value can be attached to them.
Deep into the series into the ongoing battle, it is the quick finishes that will remain iconic in the collective consciousness.
"This isn't the demise of Test cricket at all," commented a past champion. "The people who have been privileged to see these two days have been treated to some real entertainment. A unique show."
Signs of Progress: Looking Ahead
In the build-up to this Test, the skipper spoke like a man carrying the heavy burden on his shoulders.
The team delivered for him, bringing back the positive demeanor to his countenance.
Emerging talents delivered with key contributions. These are incremental gains, not nearly enough to secure long-term stability, but a starting point to use as a platform.
In the end, this Melbourne victory takes its place among other notable performances in dead rubbers.
As the crowd slipped away into a stunning sunset, the team assembled on the outfield to commence their own celebrations.
Savour the moment, lads. This victory was hard-fought.
