Displayed inside a display cabinet on the third floor of the iconic Melbourne stadium rests a neon pink ensemble performed in by Robbie Williams. His performance in front of a massive crowd of fans was hailed as a major hit.
Perhaps you don't enjoy his music. Maybe you feel he is the greatest gift to music the world has ever seen. Or you could adopt a balanced view, admitting that some hits are fantastic while others are poor.
The point being is that entertainment can be delivered diversely. Preferences differ. There is no one way to craft art or even Test cricket.
The Incomparable Variety of Test Cricket
Test cricket boasts unrivalled depth. One struggles to think of another sport where the playing is so dictated by the environment.
The weather, the hour of play, the cricket ball – the list is endless. Above all is the playing surface.
If the long game is art, the wicket is the blank slate on which the cricketers paint their masterpiece.
A Test of Cubism: The MCG Match
The recent Melbourne match between Australia and England was Test cricket cubism, the established format taken to pieces and reconstructed in an unusual manner.
Let's be clear, this isn't a defence of the surface which produced a win and the another short match of the Ashes battle.
Having a thick layer on the wicket, resulting in 36 wickets being taken in less than six sessions, is not a fair contest between offense and defense.
A Rich Tapestry: The Essence of Test Cricket
But any idea this was a diminished spectacle, one that should be qualified as illegitimate, is incorrect.
Test cricket is a rich tapestry, over two thousand matches and ongoing. At times, like in Melbourne, the cricket ball behaves unpredictably 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 exciting finishes are particularly captivating owing to the patience devoted elsewhere.
Adaptation: The True Test
Some factors are embraced more easily than others.
The debate in at the MCG was that the equilibrium was skewed excessively towards the bowlers. That the best players were hindered from demonstrating their skill.
Test cricket is about adapting to challenges – interpreting the conditions and adapting appropriately. The top two individual innings were made by acknowledged players. One team was less disciplined than the other, and thus were defeated.
Unbridled Joy: For Those Who Waited
Go and inform the devotees who have experienced 18 winless matches that this lacked spectacle.
In a corner of the MCG, thousands waved their flags and sang their songs, generating a festive mood in a stronghold of sport.
There was belief as the fielding side surged, momentum when batters scored quickly, and rapturous celebration when the result was confirmed.
Contrasting Examples: The Spectrum of Test Matches
The Melbourne has a history with controversial surfaces. In the past, a game there featured a strip with the excitement of a pulled Christmas cracker.
That fixture was a slog, with limited drama and slow play. The two-day game and that drawn affair are polar opposites of the spectrum – neither perfect, yet significance can be attached to both.
Deep into the series into the current series, it is the shortest games that will be most remembered in the collective consciousness.
"This isn't the end of the long game at all," said a past champion. "The people who have been privileged to see these 48 hours have been treated to some fantastic sport. An unusual spectacle."
Baby Steps: A Glimmer of Hope
In the preparation to this match, the captain spoke like a man carrying the enormous pressure on his back.
The players protected him, restoring the smile to his face.
Emerging talents delivered with key contributions. These are small positives, not nearly enough to guarantee long-term stability, but a foundation to build on.
Ultimately, this MCG win is added to other historic performances in meaningless games.
As the crowd slipped away into a glorious Melbourne evening, the team gathered on the outfield to start their own celebrations.
Enjoy the drink, men. It's well deserved.
