In a display cabinet on the upper level of the MCG is housed a vibrant pink outfit donned by the pop star. The performance in front of 100,024 spectators was considered a major hit.
You might not enjoy Robbie Williams. Perhaps you believe he is the ultimate present to music in history. You might take a reasonable stance, admitting that some songs are excellent while others are awful.
The point being is that amusement can manifest in countless ways. You like what you like. There is not a single method to produce music or even five-day cricket.
The Peerless Spectrum of The Test Format
The traditional format boasts incomparable variety. One struggles to think of another sport where the playing is so dependent on the environment.
The climate, the hour of play, the cricket ball – the list is endless. Crucially is the wicket.
If the long game is art, the wicket is the foundation on which the cricketers paint their masterpiece.
An Abstract Contest: The Melbourne Spectacle
The recent Melbourne match between the two sides was an abstract version of cricket, the traditional sport broken apart and reconstructed in an unusual manner.
Let's be clear, this isn't a justification of the pitch which resulted in a win and the second two-day Test of the series.
Leaving 10mm of grass on the surface, causing 36 wickets being taken in less than two days, is not an even battle between batter and bowler.
A Diverse Legacy: The Nature of Test Cricket
But any notion this was a inferior show, one that should be footnoted as not a proper Test, is incorrect.
The long game is a diverse canvas, over two thousand matches and ongoing. Sometimes, as seen at the MCG, the ball behaves unpredictably for the seamers. Sometimes, it grips and turns on a dry surface. Sometimes, the pitch is unresponsive, other times it spits like a cobra.
The exciting finishes are even more exciting owing to the time devoted during quieter periods.
Adaptation: The Core Skill
Certain variables are embraced more freely than others.
The debate in during the match was that the contest was weighted unfairly towards the attack. That the skilled individuals were unable from playing their natural game.
This level of cricket is about adapting to challenges – reading the wicket and adjusting accordingly. The two highest individual contributions were made by recognized batters. One side was less disciplined than the other, and thus were defeated.
Sheer Celebration: The Supporters' View
Try telling the supporters who have suffered a long drought that this lacked spectacle.
In one section of the stadium, a sea of people celebrated and chanted, generating a festive mood in a stronghold of national pride.
There was belief as the bowlers dominated, advantage when the top order fought back, and pure joy when the win was confirmed.
Polar Opposites: The Variety of Test Matches
The MCG has a history with controversial surfaces. In the past, a match there featured a pitch with the character of a pulled Christmas cracker.
That fixture was a grind, with few wickets and interminable tedium. The two-day game and that drawn affair are diametrically opposed points of the scale – neither the standard, yet value can be found in both.
Deep into the series into the current series, it is the shortest games that will be most remembered in the history books.
"Far from being the end of the long game at all," observed a past champion. "The people who have been lucky enough to see these 48 hours have been treated to some genuine drama. An unusual spectacle."
Small Victories: Looking Ahead
In the lead-in to this match, the captain talked like a man carrying the weight of the world on his back.
The team delivered for him, restoring the smile to his countenance.
Different players performed with key contributions. These are incremental gains, hardly enough to ensure long-term success, but a starting point to use as a platform.
In the end, this Melbourne victory is added to other historic performances in meaningless games.
As the supporters slipped away into a stunning sunset, the players assembled on the turf to begin their own festivities.
Celebrate the win, lads. You've earned this one.
