Within a display cabinet on the third floor of the Melbourne Cricket Ground sits a neon pink ensemble donned by the pop star. His show in front of 100,024 attendees was considered a major hit.
It's possible you enjoy Robbie Williams. You might think he is the greatest gift to music the world has ever seen. You might take a middle ground, conceding that some tracks are belting while others are awful.
The key argument is that amusement can take many forms. Preferences differ. There is no one way to create literature or even five-day cricket.
The Peerless Spectrum of The Long Game
Test cricket boasts unrivalled depth. One struggles to think of another sport where the contest is so reliant upon conditions.
The weather, the session, the cricket ball – the variables are numerous. Above all is the wicket.
If the format is a form of art, the pitch is the blank slate on which the cricketers paint their masterpiece.
A Test of Cubism: The Fourth Test
The fourth Ashes Test between the old rivals was an abstract version of cricket, the traditional sport broken apart and stuck back together in abstract form.
This is not a endorsement of the pitch which resulted in a win and the second two-day Test of the series.
Allowing a thick layer on the surface, resulting in 36 wickets tumbling in less than a brief period, is not an even battle between bat and ball.
A Rich Tapestry: The Essence of Test Cricket
But any idea this was a lesser event, one that should be footnoted as not a proper Test, is mistaken.
The format is a rich tapestry, over two thousand matches and still growing. Sometimes, as witnessed recently, the cricket ball moves excessively for the pace bowlers. Other times, it turns square on a dry surface. Sometimes, the pitch is unresponsive, other times it explodes.
The exciting finishes are even more exciting due to the time devoted during quieter periods.
Problem Solving: The Core Skill
Some factors are embraced more freely than others.
The argument in at the MCG was that the equilibrium was tipped too far towards the bowlers. That the top batters were unable from playing their natural game.
This level of cricket is about finding solutions – assessing the wicket and adapting accordingly. The top two individual contributions were made by acknowledged stars. One team committed more errors than the other, and thus lost.
Pure Elation: For Those Who Waited
Go and inform the supporters who have suffered years of defeat that this lacked spectacle.
Among the crowd of the MCG, countless fans celebrated and chanted, producing a carnival vibe in a stronghold of Australian cricket.
There was belief as the fielding side surged, impetus when batters scored quickly, and pure joy when the win was confirmed.
Extreme Ends: The Spectrum of Test Matches
The Melbourne has form with controversial surfaces. Previously, a game there featured a pitch with the excitement of a pulled Christmas cracker.
That fixture was a slog, with limited drama and slow play. The latest encounter and that previous match are polar opposites of the range – neither perfect, yet value can be ascribed to them.
Four Tests into the ongoing battle, it is the shortest games that will be most remembered in the collective consciousness.
"Far from being the demise of Test cricket at all," observed a former player. "The people who have been lucky enough to see these 48 hours have been given some genuine drama. An unusual spectacle."
Baby Steps: Building for the Future
In the lead-in to this Test, the captain talked like a man carrying the heavy burden on his back.
The squad responded for him, restoring the joy to his face.
Emerging talents performed with key contributions. These are small positives, hardly enough to ensure long-term futures, but a foundation to build on.
Ultimately, this Melbourne victory takes its place among other notable performances in similar circumstances.
As the supporters left into a stunning sunset, the squad assembled on the field to start their own festivities.
Savour the moment, boys. It's well deserved.
