In a showcase on the elevated floor of the Melbourne Cricket Ground rests a vibrant pink suit donned by the pop star. The show in front of a massive crowd of attendees was considered a triumph.
Perhaps you don't enjoy the performer. Perhaps you believe he is the finest offering to music in history. Or you could adopt a reasonable stance, conceding that some tracks are excellent while others are awful.
The central idea is that enjoyment can take many forms. You like what you like. There is no one way to create music or even the longest format.
The Unrivalled Depth of Test Cricket
The five-day game boasts peerless complexity. One struggles to think of another sport where the playing is so dependent on conditions.
The weather, the session, the ball – the factors are countless. Above all is the wicket.
If Test cricket is art, the strip is the foundation on which the players craft their legacy.
A Test of Cubism: The MCG Match
The Boxing Day fixture between the two sides was the game deconstructed, the established format taken to pieces and stuck back together in abstract form.
This is not a defence of the pitch which resulted in a win and the second two-day Test of the series.
Having 10mm of grass on the wicket, causing numerous dismissals falling in less than a brief period, is not an even battle between offense and defense.
A Diverse Legacy: The Core of Test Cricket
But any notion this was a inferior show, one that should be footnoted as not a proper Test, is wide of the mark.
The format is a varied portfolio, over two thousand matches and still growing. At times, as seen at the MCG, the cricket ball behaves unpredictably for the seamers. Sometimes, it spins sharply on a dry surface. Sometimes, the pitch is flat as a pancake, other times it explodes.
The close matches are particularly captivating owing to the investment devoted elsewhere.
Adaptation: The True Test
Some factors are embraced more easily than others.
The argument in Melbourne was that the contest was skewed excessively towards the bowlers. That the top batters were prevented from demonstrating their skill.
This level of cricket is about adapting to challenges – reading the wicket and adjusting accordingly. The two highest individual innings were made by acknowledged batters. One line-up was less disciplined than the other, and thus ended up second best.
Pure Elation: For Those Who Waited
Go and inform the fans who have experienced years of defeat that this wasn't compelling.
Among the crowd of the ground, thousands waved their flags and sang their songs, fostering a festive mood in a stronghold of national pride.
There was optimism as the fielding side dominated, impetus when players scored quickly, and unconditional love when the victory was secured.
Polar Opposites: The Variety of Test Matches
The Melbourne has form with difficult wickets. In the past, a game there featured a wicket with all the life of a pulled Christmas cracker.
That match was a slog, with few wickets and interminable tedium. This recent match and that previous match are diametrically opposed points of the scale – neither the standard, yet significance can be ascribed to each.
Four Tests into the ongoing battle, it is the shortest games that will live longest in the collective consciousness.
"It's not the end of the format at all," said a past champion. "Spectators who have been fortunate to see these short time have been experienced some real entertainment. A unique show."
Small Victories: Looking Ahead
In the build-up to this match, the skipper addressed the media like a man carrying the heavy burden on his mind.
The squad responded for him, reinstating the joy to his countenance.
Emerging talents stepped up with key contributions. These are incremental gains, certainly not enough to guarantee long-term success, but something to develop from.
In the end, this Melbourne victory takes its place among other historic performances in similar circumstances.
As the supporters departed into a glorious Melbourne evening, the squad congregated on the turf to commence their own enjoyment.
Celebrate the win, men. It's well deserved.
