Displayed inside a showcase on the upper level of the iconic Melbourne stadium rests a electric pink suit worn by the entertainer. His show in front of a massive crowd of spectators was considered a triumph.
Perhaps you don't enjoy the performer. Perhaps you believe he is the ultimate present to music known to man. Or you could adopt a balanced view, admitting that some hits are belting while others are awful.
The central idea is that entertainment can manifest in countless ways. Tastes vary. There is not a single method to create music or even five-day cricket.
The Incomparable Variety of Test Cricket
Test cricket boasts incomparable variety. It's difficult to think of another sport where the playing is so dictated by conditions.
The weather, the time of day, the cricket ball – the list is endless. Above all is the pitch.
If the long game is an artistic pursuit, the wicket is the foundation on which the athletes craft their legacy.
A Broken-Down Battle: The MCG Match
The fourth Ashes Test between the two sides was an abstract version of cricket, the established format taken to pieces and reassembled in a bizarre shape.
This is not a endorsement of the surface which produced a triumph and the second two-day Test of the Ashes battle.
Leaving excessive grass on the pitch, resulting in 36 wickets being taken in less than a brief period, is not an even battle between offense and defense.
A Diverse Legacy: The Nature of Test Cricket
But any idea this was a lesser event, one that should be footnoted as illegitimate, is incorrect.
Test cricket is a varied portfolio, 2,615 parts and still growing. At times, as seen at the MCG, the ball does all sorts for the seamers. Other times, it spins sharply on a dry surface. Sometimes, the pitch is dead, other times it spits like a cobra.
The thrillers are all the more thrilling owing to the time made in other matches.
Adaptation: The Real Challenge
Specific conditions are embraced more readily than others.
The debate in Melbourne was that the contest was weighted unfairly towards the bowlers. That the skilled individuals were prevented from showcasing their talents.
Test cricket is about finding solutions – reading the conditions and adapting appropriately. The two highest individual scores were made by recognized batters. One line-up made more mistakes than the other, and thus were defeated.
Sheer Celebration: The Fan Perspective
Go and inform the devotees who have suffered 18 winless matches that this was not entertaining.
In one section of the MCG, thousands waved their flags and sang their songs, fostering a carnival vibe in a heartland of national pride.
There was belief as the bowlers excelled, impetus when batters fought back, and rapturous celebration when the victory was secured.
Polar Opposites: The Variety of Test Matches
The Melbourne has form with pitch problems. Eight years ago, a match there featured a pitch with the excitement of a pulled Christmas cracker.
That fixture was a marathon, with few wickets and endless boredom. The latest encounter and that drawn affair are extreme ends of the range – one is not more perfect, yet historical weight can be found in each.
Deep into the series into the Ashes contest, it is the shortest games that will remain iconic in the history books.
"It's not the end of Test cricket at all," observed a former player. "Fans who have been lucky enough to see these two days have been experienced some genuine drama. An unusual spectacle."
Small Victories: A Glimmer of Hope
In the lead-in to this match, the skipper addressed the media like a man carrying the enormous pressure on his mind.
The squad responded for him, bringing back the smile to his persona.
Emerging talents performed with vital performances. These are incremental gains, certainly not enough to guarantee long-term futures, but something to develop from.
In the end, this triumph joins other historic performances in dead rubbers.
As the crowd departed into a beautiful night, the players congregated on the outfield to begin their own celebrations.
Celebrate the win, men. This victory was hard-fought.
