In a glass case on the third floor of the iconic Melbourne stadium rests a vibrant pink outfit worn by the pop star. His show in front of 100,024 attendees was considered a triumph.
It's possible you enjoy the performer. Maybe you feel he is the finest offering to music the world has ever seen. Or you could adopt a reasonable stance, acknowledging that some tracks are belting while others are terrible.
The central idea is that amusement can manifest in countless ways. Preferences differ. There is not a single method to create literature or even five-day cricket.
The Unrivalled Depth of Test Cricket
Test cricket boasts incomparable variety. One struggles to think of another sport where the playing is so reliant upon external factors.
The elements, the time of day, the red ball – the variables are numerous. Crucially is the pitch.
If the format is art, the pitch is the canvas on which the players paint their masterpiece.
A Broken-Down Battle: The Melbourne Spectacle
The fourth Ashes Test between the old rivals was Test cricket cubism, the great game taken to pieces and reconstructed in an unusual manner.
This is not a defence of the pitch which produced a triumph and the another sub-three-day finish of the Ashes battle.
Allowing excessive grass on the wicket, resulting in numerous dismissals falling in less than two days, is not a fair contest between batter and bowler.
A Rich Tapestry: The Core of Test Cricket
But any notion this was a lesser event, one that should be qualified as inauthentic, is mistaken.
The long game is a varied portfolio, a long history and ongoing. On occasion, like in Melbourne, the ball moves excessively for the fast men. Sometimes, it spins sharply on a spinning track. At other venues, the pitch is dead, other times it explodes.
The thrillers are particularly captivating because of the investment made elsewhere.
Adjustment: The True Test
Certain variables are tolerated more freely than others.
The argument in Melbourne was that the equilibrium was tipped too far towards the bowlers. That the best players were unable from playing their natural game.
This level of cricket is about problem solving – reading the situation and adjusting appropriately. The top two individual innings were made by world-class batters. One side was less disciplined than the other, and thus lost.
Unbridled Joy: The Supporters' View
Go and inform the fans who have experienced years of defeat that this lacked spectacle.
In one section of the MCG, countless fans made noise and chanted, fostering a festive mood in a bastion of Australian cricket.
There was belief as the attack excelled, advantage when the top order scored quickly, and rapturous celebration when the result was secured.
Extreme Ends: The Spectrum of Test Matches
The MCG has form with difficult wickets. In the past, a Test there featured a pitch with the character of a pulled Christmas cracker.
That fixture was a grind, with limited drama and endless boredom. The latest encounter and that previous match are polar opposites of the spectrum – neither perfect, yet value can be found in both.
At this stage into the Ashes contest, it is the two-day matches that will be most remembered in the history books.
"Far from being the end of Test cricket at all," observed a past champion. "Fans who have been privileged to see these two days have been experienced some genuine drama. A unique show."
Small Victories: Looking Ahead
In the build-up to this match, the leader addressed the media like a man carrying the enormous pressure on his shoulders.
The team delivered for him, bringing back the smile to his persona.
Different players stepped up with key contributions. These are incremental gains, certainly not enough to ensure long-term futures, but a starting point to build on.
Ultimately, this Melbourne victory takes its place among other notable performances in similar circumstances.
As the crowd left into a stunning sunset, the team congregated on the field to commence their own celebrations.
Celebrate the win, lads. This victory was hard-fought.
