In a showcase on the third floor of the Melbourne Cricket Ground is housed a electric pink outfit donned by the pop star. The concert in front of 100,024 fans was hailed as a triumph.
You might not appreciate Robbie Williams. Maybe you feel he is the ultimate present to music known to man. Alternatively, you may hold a reasonable stance, acknowledging that some songs are belting while others are terrible.
The key argument is that enjoyment can manifest in countless ways. Preferences differ. There is no one way to produce music or even five-day cricket.
The Peerless Spectrum of Test Cricket
The five-day game boasts unrivalled depth. It's difficult to think of another sport where the contest is so dependent on the environment.
The climate, the time of day, the cricket ball – the list is endless. Above all is the wicket.
If the long game is art, the wicket is the blank slate on which the cricketers create their art.
An Abstract Contest: The MCG Match
The fourth Ashes Test between the two sides was Test cricket cubism, the traditional sport broken apart and stuck back together in abstract form.
This is not a defence of the wicket which yielded a victory and the another short match of the contest.
Allowing a thick layer on the surface, causing a cascade of wickets being taken in less than a brief period, is not a fair contest between bat and ball.
A Rich Tapestry: The Nature of Test Cricket
But any notion this was a lesser event, one that should be qualified as not a proper Test, is mistaken.
Test cricket is a diverse canvas, over two thousand matches and still growing. At times, as seen at the MCG, the ball moves excessively for the fast men. Sometimes, it spins sharply on a spinning track. Sometimes, the pitch is dead, other times it explodes.
The exciting finishes are even more exciting owing to the patience devoted in other matches.
Adjustment: The Core Skill
Certain variables are accepted more freely than others.
The argument in at the MCG was that the balance was tipped too far towards the bowlers. That the top batters were prevented from showcasing their talents.
This level of cricket is about problem solving – reading the conditions and responding effectively. The best individual contributions were made by world-class batters. One team made more mistakes than the other, and thus were defeated.
Pure Elation: The Fan Perspective
Attempt to convince the devotees who have suffered a long drought that this was not entertaining.
In a corner of the ground, thousands waved their flags and created an atmosphere, fostering a festive mood in a bastion of national pride.
There was belief as the attack excelled, impetus when batters fought back, and rapturous celebration when the result was achieved.
Contrasting Examples: The Spectrum of Test Matches
The Melbourne has previous experience with pitch problems. Eight years ago, a game there featured a pitch with the character of a a damp squib.
That fixture was a grind, with limited drama and interminable tedium. This recent match and that drawn affair are polar opposites of the spectrum – neither perfect, yet historical weight can be attached to each.
Four Tests into the current series, it is the two-day matches that will be most remembered in the history books.
"This isn't the demise of Test cricket at all," said a past champion. "The people who have been lucky enough to see these short time have been given some genuine drama. Different entertainment."
Baby Steps: A Glimmer of Hope
In the preparation to this Test, the captain addressed the media like a man carrying the enormous pressure on his back.
The squad protected him, reinstating the smile to his countenance.
Emerging talents performed with vital performances. These are small positives, certainly not enough to ensure long-term futures, but a foundation to build on.
At the very least, this Melbourne victory is added to other historic performances in similar circumstances.
As the fans departed into a beautiful night, the team congregated on the field to start their own festivities.
Celebrate the win, men. It's well deserved.
