In a display cabinet on the third floor of the iconic Melbourne stadium rests a neon pink suit donned by Robbie Williams. The performance in front of 100,024 attendees was seen as a major hit.
Perhaps you don't like Robbie Williams. Maybe you feel he is the finest offering to music known to man. Or you could adopt a balanced view, acknowledging that some tracks are fantastic while others are poor.
The key argument is that amusement can be delivered diversely. You like what you like. There is no universal formula to produce music or even the longest format.
The Peerless Spectrum of The Long Game
The five-day game boasts peerless complexity. It is hard to think of another sport where the playing is so reliant upon external factors.
The elements, the hour of play, the cricket ball – the list is endless. Most important is the wicket.
If the format is an artistic pursuit, the strip is the canvas on which the athletes create their art.
An Abstract Contest: The MCG Match
The Boxing Day fixture between the old rivals was Test cricket cubism, the great game broken apart and reconstructed in a bizarre shape.
It must be stated this is not a justification of the wicket which resulted in a victory and the second two-day Test of the series.
Leaving 10mm of grass on the pitch, resulting in a cascade of wickets tumbling in less than a brief period, is not a fair contest between bat and ball.
A Rich Tapestry: The Essence of Test Cricket
But any suggestion this was a lesser event, one that should be qualified as inauthentic, is wide of the mark.
The format is a diverse canvas, over two thousand matches and counting. On occasion, like in Melbourne, the cricket ball moves excessively for the pace bowlers. Sometimes, it spins sharply on a dust bowl. Sometimes, the pitch is unresponsive, other times it spits like a cobra.
The close matches are all the more thrilling because of the investment made during quieter periods.
Adjustment: The True Test
Specific conditions are accepted more freely than others.
The argument in at the MCG was that the balance was weighted unfairly towards the fielding side. That the top batters were hindered from playing their natural game.
The format is about finding solutions – interpreting the conditions and adapting effectively. The best individual scores were made by world-class stars. One side was less disciplined than the other, and thus were defeated.
Unbridled Joy: The Supporters' View
Try telling the devotees who have endured 18 winless matches that this was not entertaining.
In a corner of the MCG, thousands waved their flags and created an atmosphere, fostering a carnival vibe in a heartland of national pride.
There was hope as the bowlers surged, momentum when the top order responded, and unconditional love when the victory was achieved.
Extreme Ends: The Spectrum of Test Matches
The venue has form with difficult wickets. Eight years ago, a Test there featured a pitch with all the life of a a damp squib.
That fixture was a marathon, with limited drama and slow play. The two-day game and that previous match are extreme ends of the spectrum – both are not ideal, yet historical weight can be found in each.
Deep into the series into the current series, it is the two-day matches that will be most remembered in the history books.
"Far from being the death of Test cricket at all," said a past champion. "Spectators who have been lucky enough to see these short time have been experienced some genuine drama. A unique show."
Signs of Progress: Building for the Future
In the lead-in to this match, the captain talked like a man carrying the weight of the world on his back.
The squad responded for him, bringing back the joy to his face.
Emerging talents stepped up with key contributions. These are incremental gains, not nearly enough to secure long-term stability, but a starting point to use as a platform.
Ultimately, this triumph takes its place among other historic performances in meaningless games.
As the crowd departed into a glorious Melbourne evening, the team congregated on the turf to start their own festivities.
Enjoy the drink, boys. This victory was hard-fought.
