Displayed inside a display cabinet on the elevated floor of the Melbourne Cricket Ground sits a electric pink suit worn by the pop star. The performance in front of 100,024 attendees was seen as a triumph.
It's possible you appreciate Robbie Williams. You might think he is the finest offering to music known to man. You might take a balanced view, acknowledging that some hits are excellent while others are awful.
The point being is that amusement can manifest in countless ways. Preferences differ. There is no universal formula to craft art or even five-day cricket.
The Peerless Spectrum of Test Cricket
Test cricket boasts unrivalled depth. One struggles to think of another sport where the outcome is so dependent on external factors.
The elements, the session, the cricket ball – the factors are countless. Most important is the playing surface.
If the long game is art, the wicket is the foundation on which the athletes create their art.
A Test of Cubism: The Fourth Test
The Boxing Day fixture between the old rivals was the game deconstructed, the great game taken to pieces and stuck back together in a bizarre shape.
This is not a defence of the surface which produced a win and the second two-day Test of the series.
Having a thick layer on the surface, leading to numerous dismissals tumbling in less than two days, is not a fair contest between batter and bowler.
A Varied History: The Nature of Test Cricket
But any suggestion this was a lesser event, one that should be footnoted as inauthentic, is incorrect.
The format is a varied portfolio, over two thousand matches and ongoing. At times, as witnessed recently, the cricket ball behaves unpredictably for the seamers. Sometimes, it turns square on a dust bowl. Sometimes, the pitch is unresponsive, other times it bounces unevenly.
The thrillers are even more exciting because of the time committed elsewhere.
Problem Solving: The Real Challenge
Certain variables are tolerated more freely than others.
The debate in during the match was that the equilibrium was weighted unfairly towards the fielding side. That the top batters were hindered from showcasing their talents.
This level of cricket is about finding solutions – interpreting the conditions and adjusting accordingly. The top two individual scores were made by acknowledged players. One side made more mistakes than the other, and thus ended up second best.
Sheer Celebration: The Fan Perspective
Attempt to convince the fans who have experienced 18 winless matches that this wasn't compelling.
In a corner of the ground, thousands made noise and created an atmosphere, generating a festive mood in a bastion of Australian cricket.
There was belief as the bowlers excelled, advantage when the top order fought back, and rapturous celebration when the victory was secured.
Polar Opposites: The Spectrum of Test Matches
The venue has a history with controversial surfaces. In the past, a match there featured a wicket with the character of a a damp squib.
That match was a marathon, with limited drama and endless boredom. This recent match and that drawn affair are diametrically opposed points of the scale – neither the standard, yet historical weight can be ascribed to them.
Deep into the series into the current series, it is the shortest games that will live longest in the memory.
"Far from being the death of Test cricket at all," observed a veteran. "The people who have been fortunate to see these two days have been experienced some real entertainment. An unusual spectacle."
Signs of Progress: Looking Ahead
In the preparation to this match, the captain spoke like a man carrying the enormous pressure on his back.
The players protected him, reinstating the smile to his persona.
Different players performed with vital performances. These are incremental gains, hardly enough to guarantee long-term success, but something to build on.
At the very least, this triumph joins other notable performances in dead rubbers.
As the supporters departed into a glorious Melbourne evening, the squad gathered on the outfield to commence their own enjoyment.
Celebrate the win, lads. This victory was hard-fought.
