Within a glass case on the elevated floor of the MCG sits a electric pink outfit performed in by the entertainer. The show in front of a hundred thousand attendees was considered a success.
Perhaps you don't like the performer. Maybe you feel he is the ultimate present to music in history. Or you could adopt a balanced view, admitting that some songs are excellent while others are poor.
The key argument is that amusement can manifest in countless ways. You like what you like. There is not a single method to create literature or even Test cricket.
The Incomparable Variety of The Long Game
Test cricket boasts peerless complexity. It is hard to think of another sport where the contest is so reliant upon the environment.
The elements, the session, the red ball – the factors are countless. Above all is the wicket.
If Test cricket is a form of art, the pitch is the blank slate on which the players craft their legacy.
A Test of Cubism: The Melbourne Spectacle
The Boxing Day fixture between the old rivals was Test cricket cubism, the great game dismantled and reconstructed in abstract form.
It must be stated this is not a endorsement of the surface which resulted in a triumph and the second two-day Test of the Ashes battle.
Allowing excessive grass on the surface, resulting in 36 wickets falling in less than two days, is not an even battle between offense and defense.
A Varied History: The Essence of Test Cricket
But any notion this was a lesser event, one that should be qualified as not a proper Test, is wide of the mark.
The long game is a rich tapestry, 2,615 parts and ongoing. At times, as seen at the MCG, the ball behaves unpredictably for the fast men. Sometimes, it grips and turns on a spinning track. Sometimes, the pitch is unresponsive, other times it explodes.
The thrillers are all the more thrilling owing to the time devoted during quieter periods.
Adjustment: The Core Skill
Specific conditions are accepted more freely than others.
The contention in at the MCG was that the equilibrium was tipped too far towards the fielding side. That the skilled individuals were unable from demonstrating their skill.
The format is about problem solving – assessing the wicket and responding accordingly. The two highest individual innings were made by world-class stars. One team made more mistakes than the other, and thus lost.
Unbridled Joy: For Those Who Waited
Try telling the devotees who have experienced years of defeat that this was not entertaining.
In one section of the ground, thousands celebrated and sang their songs, producing a party atmosphere in a heartland of sport.
There was belief as the bowlers excelled, momentum when players responded, and unconditional love when the win was secured.
Extreme Ends: The Variety of Test Matches
The Melbourne has a history with difficult wickets. In the past, a match there featured a pitch with the excitement of a a damp squib.
That match was a grind, with few wickets and interminable tedium. The latest encounter and that drawn affair are extreme ends of the spectrum – one is not more perfect, yet significance can be found in both.
Deep into the series into the Ashes contest, it is the shortest games that will live longest in the collective consciousness.
"Far from being the end of the long game at all," commented a veteran. "Fans who have been lucky enough to see these 48 hours have been given some genuine drama. An unusual spectacle."
Baby Steps: Looking Ahead
In the preparation to this match, the leader addressed the media like a man carrying the enormous pressure on his back.
The squad protected him, reinstating the smile to his face.
Different players stepped up with vital performances. These are baby steps, certainly not enough to secure long-term stability, but a foundation to build on.
In the end, this MCG win joins other historic performances in dead rubbers.
As the supporters slipped away into a glorious Melbourne evening, the players congregated on the field to begin their own celebrations.
Enjoy the drink, lads. This victory was hard-fought.
