Within a display cabinet on the third floor of the Melbourne Cricket Ground rests a vibrant pink ensemble donned by the pop star. His performance in front of a hundred thousand spectators was seen as a success.
You might not like the performer. Maybe you feel he is the ultimate present to music the world has ever seen. Alternatively, you may hold a middle ground, acknowledging that some tracks are excellent while others are poor.
The central idea is that amusement can manifest in countless ways. Tastes vary. There is not a single method to produce art or even five-day cricket.
The Incomparable Variety of Test Cricket
The traditional format boasts incomparable variety. One struggles to think of another sport where the outcome is so reliant upon conditions.
The weather, the session, the cricket ball – the factors are countless. Crucially is the wicket.
If the long game is an artistic pursuit, the pitch is the foundation on which the players paint their masterpiece.
An Abstract Contest: The Fourth Test
The recent Melbourne match between the old rivals was an abstract version of cricket, the great game broken apart and reconstructed in an unusual manner.
It must be stated this is not a endorsement of the pitch which yielded a win and the another short match of the Ashes battle.
Allowing 10mm of grass on the pitch, resulting in numerous dismissals tumbling in less than two days, is not a balanced duel between bat and ball.
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 incorrect.
The long game is a rich tapestry, a long history and ongoing. On occasion, as seen at the MCG, the cricket ball does all sorts for the seamers. In contrast, it spins sharply on a spinning track. At other venues, the pitch is unresponsive, other times it spits like a cobra.
The close matches are even more exciting due to the time committed elsewhere.
Problem Solving: The True Test
Specific conditions are accepted more readily than others.
The argument in at the MCG was that the balance was tipped too far towards the fielding side. That the best players were prevented from playing their natural game.
The format is about problem solving – interpreting the conditions and adapting effectively. The two highest individual contributions were made by world-class batters. One team committed more errors than the other, and thus lost.
Sheer Celebration: The Fan Perspective
Go and inform the devotees who have suffered 18 winless matches that this was not entertaining.
In a corner of the stadium, countless fans made noise and chanted, fostering a festive mood in a heartland of sport.
There was hope as the fielding side excelled, impetus when batters scored quickly, and rapturous celebration when the result was confirmed.
Extreme Ends: The Range of Test Matches
The venue has previous experience with pitch problems. Previously, a match there featured a pitch with the excitement of a a damp squib.
That fixture was a slog, with minimal action and interminable tedium. This recent match and that previous match are diametrically opposed points of the range – one is not more the standard, yet value can be attached to each.
Deep into the series into the Ashes contest, it is the two-day matches that will live longest in the memory.
"This isn't the end of Test cricket at all," said a past champion. "Fans who have been privileged to see these 48 hours have been treated to some real entertainment. An unusual spectacle."
Baby Steps: A Glimmer of Hope
In the preparation to this match, the leader talked like a man carrying the enormous pressure on his mind.
The team responded for him, bringing back the positive demeanor to his countenance.
Different players stepped up with vital performances. These are incremental gains, hardly enough to secure long-term stability, but a starting point to build on.
At the very least, this triumph is added to other memorable performances in similar circumstances.
As the crowd left into a stunning sunset, the team congregated on the field to begin their own festivities.
Celebrate the win, boys. This victory was hard-fought.
