Within a showcase on the elevated floor of the MCG sits a neon pink ensemble performed in by the entertainer. His performance in front of a massive crowd of spectators was hailed as a success.
Perhaps you don't like his music. You might think he is the greatest gift to music known to man. You might take a middle ground, conceding that some songs are fantastic while others are awful.
The central idea is that entertainment can be delivered diversely. Preferences differ. There is no one way to create literature or even the longest format.
The Incomparable Variety of The Test Format
The traditional format boasts peerless complexity. It is hard to think of another sport where the outcome is so dictated by external factors.
The elements, the time of day, the cricket ball – the factors are countless. Above all is the wicket.
If the long game is an artistic pursuit, the wicket is the foundation on which the players create their art.
A Broken-Down Battle: The MCG Match
The Boxing Day fixture between the old rivals was Test cricket cubism, the great game dismantled and reconstructed in abstract form.
Let's be clear, this isn't a endorsement of the pitch which resulted in a win and the another short match of the contest.
Allowing a thick layer on the pitch, leading to numerous dismissals tumbling in less than six sessions, is not an even battle between bat and ball.
A Varied History: The Core of Test Cricket
But any idea this was a inferior show, one that should be marked with an asterisk as inauthentic, is mistaken.
The format is a varied portfolio, over two thousand matches and counting. On occasion, as witnessed recently, the cricket ball moves excessively for the fast men. Other times, it turns square on a dust bowl. At other venues, the pitch is unresponsive, other times it spits like a cobra.
The thrillers are even more exciting owing to the patience devoted elsewhere.
Adaptation: The True Test
Some factors are accepted more easily than others.
The debate in at the MCG was that the balance was skewed excessively towards the fielding side. That the top batters were unable from showcasing their talents.
Test cricket is about adapting to challenges – assessing the situation and responding effectively. The best individual contributions were made by acknowledged batters. One line-up made more mistakes than the other, and thus ended up second best.
Sheer Celebration: The Fan Perspective
Go and inform the devotees who have experienced a long drought that this was not entertaining.
Among the crowd of the MCG, a sea of people celebrated and chanted, fostering a party atmosphere in a bastion of national pride.
There was hope as the attack excelled, advantage when players responded, and unconditional love when the victory was achieved.
Contrasting Examples: The Range of Test Matches
The MCG has form with difficult wickets. Eight years ago, a Test there featured a wicket with the excitement of a a non-event.
That match was a grind, with limited drama and slow play. This recent match and that slow Test are diametrically opposed points of the spectrum – neither ideal, yet significance can be found in each.
Four Tests into the Ashes contest, it is the shortest games that will remain iconic in the collective consciousness.
"It's not the demise of the long game at all," said a past champion. "Spectators who have been fortunate to see these short time have been treated to some genuine drama. Different entertainment."
Small Victories: A Glimmer of Hope
In the preparation to this Test, the captain spoke like a man carrying the enormous pressure on his shoulders.
The squad responded for him, reinstating the joy to his face.
New faces delivered with key contributions. These are small positives, hardly enough to guarantee long-term success, but a starting point to build on.
In the end, this MCG win joins other historic performances in meaningless games.
As the supporters slipped away into a glorious Melbourne evening, the players congregated on the turf to start their own celebrations.
Celebrate the win, men. This victory was hard-fought.
