Within a display cabinet on the elevated floor of the iconic Melbourne stadium rests a electric pink outfit donned by the pop star. The performance in front of a massive crowd of fans was considered a success.
You might not enjoy his music. Maybe you feel he is the finest offering to music the world has ever seen. Or you could adopt a balanced view, admitting that some hits are fantastic while others are poor.
The key argument is that amusement can manifest in countless ways. You like what you like. There is no universal formula to produce art or even Test cricket.
The Peerless Spectrum of The Test Format
Test cricket boasts incomparable variety. It's difficult to think of another sport where the outcome is so dependent on the environment.
The weather, the hour of play, the red ball – the factors are countless. Crucially is the playing surface.
If Test cricket is a form of art, the strip is the canvas on which the players create their art.
A Test of Cubism: The MCG Match
The fourth Ashes Test between the two sides was an abstract version of cricket, the great game broken apart and reassembled in abstract form.
Let's be clear, this isn't a defence of the wicket which produced a win and the another short match of the contest.
Leaving 10mm of grass on the surface, resulting in numerous dismissals tumbling in less than two days, is not an even battle between offense and defense.
A Varied History: The Nature of Test Cricket
But any notion this was a diminished spectacle, one that should be qualified as not a proper Test, is wide of the mark.
Test cricket is a diverse canvas, over two thousand matches and ongoing. On occasion, as seen at the MCG, the cricket ball moves excessively for the fast men. Other times, it grips and turns on a spinning track. Sometimes, the pitch is dead, other times it bounces unevenly.
The thrillers are all the more thrilling due to the time made elsewhere.
Adjustment: The True Test
Certain variables are accepted more easily than others.
The argument in at the MCG was that the contest was tipped too far towards the fielding side. That the best players were unable from demonstrating their skill.
The format is about problem solving – assessing the conditions and responding accordingly. The two highest individual contributions were made by world-class stars. One line-up was less disciplined than the other, and thus ended up second best.
Unbridled Joy: For Those Who Waited
Go and inform the devotees who have suffered years of defeat that this was not entertaining.
In one section of the stadium, countless fans made noise and chanted, producing a festive mood in a bastion of Australian cricket.
There was belief as the attack excelled, advantage when batters responded, and pure joy when the result was secured.
Polar Opposites: The Spectrum of Test Matches
The venue has previous experience with difficult wickets. Previously, a match there featured a strip with the character of a a damp squib.
That match was a marathon, with few wickets and slow play. The two-day game and that previous match are extreme ends of the range – one is not more the standard, yet value can be attached to them.
At this stage into the current series, it is the quick finishes that will be most remembered in the history books.
"This isn't the death of the long game at all," commented a veteran. "Spectators who have been fortunate to see these 48 hours have been treated to some genuine drama. An unusual spectacle."
Baby Steps: Building for the Future
In the preparation to this Test, the skipper addressed the media like a man carrying the enormous pressure on his mind.
The squad responded for him, bringing back the smile to his face.
New faces performed with crucial roles. These are incremental gains, not nearly enough to guarantee long-term stability, but a foundation to develop from.
Ultimately, this Melbourne victory is added to other notable performances in similar circumstances.
As the fans left into a beautiful night, the squad congregated on the field to begin their own enjoyment.
Savour the moment, boys. It's well deserved.
