In a display cabinet on the third floor of the Melbourne Cricket Ground is housed a vibrant pink ensemble performed in by the pop star. His performance in front of a hundred thousand fans was seen as a major hit.
Perhaps you don't appreciate his music. Perhaps you believe he is the finest offering to music the world has ever seen. Or you could adopt a balanced view, acknowledging that some songs are excellent while others are awful.
The central idea is that enjoyment can manifest in countless ways. You like what you like. There is no one way to produce music or even Test cricket.
The Peerless Spectrum of Test Cricket
The traditional format boasts peerless complexity. One struggles to think of another sport where the playing is so reliant upon the environment.
The weather, the hour of play, the ball – the list is endless. Above all is the wicket.
If Test cricket is a form of art, the strip is the foundation on which the athletes paint their masterpiece.
A Test of Cubism: The Melbourne Spectacle
The Boxing Day fixture between the old rivals was the game deconstructed, the established format dismantled and stuck back together in a bizarre shape.
It must be stated this is not a endorsement of the wicket which yielded a victory and the another short match of the Ashes battle.
Allowing 10mm of grass on the surface, causing numerous dismissals falling in less than six sessions, is not a fair contest between bat and ball.
A Diverse Legacy: The Core of Test Cricket
But any notion this was a inferior show, one that should be footnoted as illegitimate, is mistaken.
The long game is a rich tapestry, 2,615 parts and ongoing. Sometimes, as witnessed recently, the ball moves excessively for the fast men. Other times, it spins sharply on a spinning track. At other venues, the pitch is flat as a pancake, other times it spits like a cobra.
The exciting finishes are even more exciting because of the patience made during quieter periods.
Problem Solving: The True Test
Some factors are accepted more easily than others.
The argument in during the match was that the contest was skewed excessively towards the bowlers. That the best players were unable from demonstrating their skill.
This level of cricket is about problem solving – reading the situation and adapting accordingly. The two highest individual contributions were made by acknowledged batters. One team committed more errors than the other, and thus lost.
Pure Elation: For Those Who Waited
Go and inform the devotees who have suffered a long drought that this was not entertaining.
In one section of the MCG, countless fans celebrated and created an atmosphere, fostering a festive mood in a heartland of Australian cricket.
There was hope as the attack surged, momentum when batters fought back, and rapturous celebration when the result was secured.
Extreme Ends: The Range of Test Matches
The Melbourne has a history with pitch problems. In the past, a game there featured a wicket with the character of a pulled Christmas cracker.
That fixture was a slog, with limited drama and slow play. This recent match and that previous match are polar opposites of the spectrum – both are not ideal, yet value can be attached to each.
Deep into the series into the Ashes contest, it is the quick finishes that will live longest in the memory.
"It's not the death of Test cricket at all," observed a past champion. "The people who have been privileged to see these two days have been given some fantastic sport. Different entertainment."
Signs of Progress: Looking Ahead
In the preparation to this match, the leader talked like a man carrying the weight of the world on his mind.
The squad delivered for him, bringing back the positive demeanor to his face.
New faces delivered with vital performances. These are incremental gains, not nearly enough to ensure long-term success, but a foundation to use as a platform.
Ultimately, this MCG win is added to other memorable performances in similar circumstances.
As the crowd left into a beautiful night, the players assembled on the turf to commence their own celebrations.
Celebrate the win, boys. You've earned this one.
