Within a showcase on the third floor of the MCG rests a electric pink ensemble donned by the entertainer. The performance in front of a massive crowd of fans was hailed as a triumph.
Perhaps you don't enjoy the performer. You might think he is the greatest gift to music the world has ever seen. Alternatively, you may hold a middle ground, acknowledging that some hits are fantastic while others are poor.
The point being is that entertainment can take many forms. You like what you like. There is no universal formula to produce music or even the longest format.
The Incomparable Variety of The Long Game
The traditional format boasts incomparable variety. It's difficult to think of another sport where the playing is so dependent on external factors.
The elements, the hour of play, the ball – the variables are numerous. Crucially is the playing surface.
If the long game is art, the wicket is the foundation on which the athletes paint their masterpiece.
A Broken-Down Battle: 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 an unusual manner.
Let's be clear, this isn't a justification of the surface which yielded a triumph and the another sub-three-day finish of the series.
Allowing excessive grass on the surface, leading to 36 wickets being taken in less than two days, is not an even battle between offense and defense.
A Rich Tapestry: The Core of Test Cricket
But any idea this was a diminished spectacle, one that should be footnoted as inauthentic, is incorrect.
The format is a diverse canvas, a long history and still growing. On occasion, like in Melbourne, the cricket ball moves excessively for the pace bowlers. Sometimes, it grips and turns on a dry surface. Sometimes, the pitch is dead, other times it explodes.
The exciting finishes are all the more thrilling because of the patience devoted in other matches.
Problem Solving: The Core Skill
Specific conditions are accepted more freely than others.
The debate in Melbourne was that the balance was weighted unfairly towards the bowlers. That the skilled individuals were hindered from playing their natural game.
Test cricket is about problem solving – interpreting the wicket and responding accordingly. The top two individual scores were made by acknowledged batters. One line-up committed more errors than the other, and thus were defeated.
Unbridled Joy: For Those Who Waited
Go and inform the devotees who have suffered years of defeat that this wasn't compelling.
Among the crowd of the MCG, a sea of people celebrated and sang their songs, fostering a festive mood in a heartland of Australian cricket.
There was belief as the bowlers surged, momentum when the top order fought back, and unconditional love when the result was confirmed.
Polar Opposites: The Spectrum of Test Matches
The MCG has previous experience with difficult wickets. Eight years ago, a game there featured a strip with the excitement of a a damp squib.
That fixture was a slog, with few wickets and slow play. The latest encounter and that previous match are polar opposites of the range – both are not ideal, yet significance can be ascribed to both.
At this stage into the ongoing battle, it is the quick finishes that will be most remembered in the history books.
"Far from being the end of the long game at all," observed a veteran. "Spectators who have been privileged to see these 48 hours have been experienced some real entertainment. An unusual spectacle."
Signs of Progress: A Glimmer of Hope
In the preparation to this match, the captain addressed the media like a man carrying the heavy burden on his back.
The team protected him, restoring the positive demeanor to his persona.
New faces performed with vital performances. These are baby steps, not nearly enough to guarantee long-term success, but a starting point to build on.
In the end, this Melbourne victory joins other memorable performances in dead rubbers.
As the fans departed into a glorious Melbourne evening, the squad assembled on the outfield to start their own enjoyment.
Enjoy the drink, boys. This victory was hard-fought.
