Within a showcase on the elevated floor of the Melbourne Cricket Ground is housed a electric pink outfit worn by the pop star. The show in front of a hundred thousand fans was considered a success.
It's possible you enjoy the performer. Maybe you feel he is the ultimate present to music in history. Alternatively, you may hold a reasonable stance, conceding that some tracks are excellent while others are terrible.
The central idea is that enjoyment can manifest in countless ways. Tastes vary. There is no one way to create music or even five-day cricket.
The Peerless Spectrum of The Test Format
Test cricket boasts peerless complexity. It is hard to think of another sport where the outcome is so reliant upon the environment.
The elements, the time of day, the cricket ball – the list is endless. Most important is the playing surface.
If the long game is art, the strip is the blank slate on which the cricketers create their art.
A Test of Cubism: The Fourth Test
The Boxing Day fixture between the two sides was Test cricket cubism, the traditional sport taken to pieces and reassembled in a bizarre shape.
Let's be clear, this isn't a endorsement of the surface which yielded a win and the second two-day Test of the series.
Leaving excessive grass on the pitch, resulting in numerous dismissals tumbling in less than two days, is not an even battle between batter and bowler.
A Varied History: The Core of Test Cricket
But any idea this was a inferior show, one that should be qualified as inauthentic, is mistaken.
The format is a varied portfolio, over two thousand matches and ongoing. At times, like in Melbourne, the ball moves excessively for the pace bowlers. Other times, it spins sharply on a dust bowl. At other venues, the pitch is flat as a pancake, other times it explodes.
The thrillers are even more exciting due to the time made during quieter periods.
Adjustment: The Core Skill
Certain variables are accepted more readily than others.
The debate in Melbourne was that the equilibrium was tipped too far towards the attack. That the top batters were unable from demonstrating their skill.
The format is about finding solutions – reading the situation and responding accordingly. The two highest individual scores were made by recognized stars. One team committed more errors than the other, and thus lost.
Unbridled Joy: The Supporters' View
Attempt to convince the fans who have endured a long drought that this lacked spectacle.
In a corner of the stadium, a sea of people waved their flags and chanted, producing a carnival vibe in a heartland of national pride.
There was belief as the bowlers surged, impetus when batters fought back, and rapturous celebration when the win was confirmed.
Polar Opposites: The Variety of Test Matches
The MCG has previous experience with controversial surfaces. Eight years ago, a game there featured a strip with all the life of a a damp squib.
That fixture was a slog, with minimal action and slow play. The two-day game and that previous match are extreme ends of the spectrum – neither perfect, yet historical weight can be ascribed to each.
Four Tests into the Ashes contest, it is the quick finishes that will live longest in the collective consciousness.
"Far from being the death of Test cricket at all," commented a veteran. "The people who have been privileged to see these 48 hours have been given some fantastic sport. Different entertainment."
Baby Steps: A Glimmer of Hope
In the build-up to this match, the leader spoke like a man carrying the enormous pressure on his shoulders.
The squad protected him, restoring the joy to his face.
New faces performed with key contributions. These are incremental gains, not nearly enough to ensure long-term stability, but a starting point to develop from.
Ultimately, this triumph joins other historic performances in meaningless games.
As the crowd left into a glorious Melbourne evening, the players gathered on the turf to begin their own enjoyment.
Enjoy the drink, boys. It's well deserved.
