In a glass case on the upper level of the iconic Melbourne stadium sits a vibrant pink outfit worn by the entertainer. His performance in front of 100,024 fans was considered a major hit.
It's possible you appreciate Robbie Williams. Maybe you feel he is the greatest gift to music in history. Alternatively, you may hold a middle ground, acknowledging that some songs are excellent while others are awful.
The key argument is that enjoyment can be delivered diversely. You like what you like. There is not a single method to craft literature or even five-day cricket.
The Incomparable Variety of Test Cricket
Test cricket boasts unrivalled depth. It's difficult to think of another sport where the playing is so reliant upon the environment.
The elements, the time of day, the ball – the variables are numerous. Most important is the pitch.
If Test cricket is art, the strip is the foundation on which the players paint their masterpiece.
A Broken-Down Battle: The Melbourne Spectacle
The Boxing Day fixture between Australia and England was the game deconstructed, the traditional sport taken to pieces and reassembled in abstract form.
Let's be clear, this isn't a endorsement of the surface which yielded a triumph and the another sub-three-day finish of the contest.
Allowing excessive grass on the wicket, leading to numerous dismissals falling in less than two days, is not an even battle between offense and defense.
A Varied History: The Essence of Test Cricket
But any notion this was a diminished spectacle, one that should be footnoted as illegitimate, is wide of the mark.
The long game is a varied portfolio, 2,615 parts and ongoing. On occasion, as witnessed recently, the cricket ball does all sorts for the pace bowlers. Sometimes, it grips and turns on a dust bowl. Sometimes, the pitch is unresponsive, other times it bounces unevenly.
The close matches are particularly captivating due to the time committed elsewhere.
Adjustment: The True Test
Specific conditions are tolerated more freely than others.
The argument in at the MCG was that the equilibrium was skewed excessively towards the attack. That the best players were hindered from playing their natural game.
Test cricket is about adapting to challenges – reading the situation and adapting accordingly. The top two individual scores were made by world-class players. One side committed more errors than the other, and thus ended up second best.
Sheer Celebration: The Supporters' View
Go and inform the supporters who have endured years of defeat that this was not entertaining.
In one section of the MCG, thousands made noise and sang their songs, fostering a party atmosphere in a bastion of national pride.
There was belief as the fielding side surged, advantage when batters scored quickly, and rapturous celebration when the win was secured.
Polar Opposites: The Variety of Test Matches
The venue has previous experience with controversial surfaces. Eight years ago, a match there featured a wicket with the excitement of a a non-event.
That fixture was a marathon, with few wickets and interminable tedium. The latest encounter and that drawn affair are extreme ends of the range – both are not ideal, yet historical weight can be found in both.
Four Tests into the current series, it is the quick finishes that will remain iconic in the memory.
"Far from being the demise of Test cricket at all," commented a veteran. "The people who have been lucky enough to see these short time have been given some real entertainment. An unusual spectacle."
Baby Steps: Building for the Future
In the lead-in to this Test, the leader spoke like a man carrying the weight of the world on his back.
The team protected him, bringing back the positive demeanor to his countenance.
Different players delivered with vital performances. These are incremental gains, hardly enough to secure long-term stability, but a foundation to use as a platform.
Ultimately, this triumph takes its place among other historic performances in similar circumstances.
As the fans left into a beautiful night, the team gathered on the field to start their own celebrations.
Enjoy the drink, lads. You've earned this one.
