Displayed inside a display cabinet on the upper level of the MCG is housed a electric pink ensemble performed in by the entertainer. His show in front of a hundred thousand spectators was considered a triumph.
It's possible you appreciate his music. Maybe you feel he is the finest offering to music the world has ever seen. Or you could adopt a middle ground, acknowledging that some tracks are fantastic while others are terrible.
The key argument is that entertainment can take many forms. Tastes vary. There is not a single method to produce literature or even Test cricket.
The Incomparable Variety of The Long Game
The five-day game boasts incomparable variety. It is hard to think of another sport where the contest is so dictated by the environment.
The climate, the hour of play, the ball – the factors are countless. Above all is the pitch.
If the format is an artistic pursuit, the wicket is the blank slate on which the cricketers 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 taken to pieces and stuck back together in abstract form.
Let's be clear, this isn't a justification of the pitch which produced a victory and the another short match of the contest.
Allowing excessive grass on the surface, causing numerous dismissals tumbling in less than two days, is not a balanced duel between batter and bowler.
A Rich Tapestry: The Essence of Test Cricket
But any idea this was a inferior show, one that should be footnoted as not a proper Test, is incorrect.
Test cricket is a diverse canvas, over two thousand matches and counting. On occasion, as seen at the MCG, the ball moves excessively for the seamers. In contrast, it grips and turns on a dry surface. Sometimes, the pitch is unresponsive, other times it explodes.
The close matches are even more exciting owing to the time made in other matches.
Adjustment: The Real Challenge
Certain variables are embraced more freely than others.
The debate in during the match was that the equilibrium was skewed excessively towards the fielding side. That the best players were prevented from playing their natural game.
The format is about adapting to challenges – interpreting the wicket and responding effectively. The best individual innings were made by recognized batters. One line-up committed more errors than the other, and thus ended up second best.
Sheer Celebration: The Fan Perspective
Go and inform the fans who have experienced years of defeat that this wasn't compelling.
Among the crowd of the MCG, a sea of people celebrated and chanted, producing a festive mood in a stronghold of national pride.
There was belief as the attack excelled, momentum when the top order fought back, and rapturous celebration when the victory was confirmed.
Polar Opposites: The Variety of Test Matches
The venue has form with pitch problems. Eight years ago, a game there featured a pitch with the excitement of a a non-event.
That contest was a grind, with few wickets and endless boredom. The latest encounter and that previous match are polar opposites of the spectrum – neither the standard, yet historical weight can be found in each.
Deep into the series into the ongoing battle, it is the quick finishes that will live longest in the collective consciousness.
"Far from being the death of the long game at all," observed a former player. "Spectators who have been lucky enough to see these two days have been given some genuine drama. A unique show."
Baby Steps: Building for the Future
In the lead-in to this match, the skipper spoke like a man carrying the enormous pressure on his back.
The players responded for him, bringing back the positive demeanor to his face.
Different players delivered with vital performances. These are incremental gains, hardly enough to ensure long-term stability, but a foundation to build on.
Ultimately, this MCG win takes its place among other notable performances in dead rubbers.
As the supporters slipped away into a stunning sunset, the squad gathered on the outfield to begin their own festivities.
Enjoy the drink, lads. It's well deserved.
