Displayed inside a display cabinet on the upper level of the MCG sits a electric pink outfit worn by the pop star. His performance in front of a hundred thousand attendees was hailed as a triumph.
You might not appreciate the performer. Maybe you feel he is the greatest gift to music the world has ever seen. Or you could adopt a balanced view, acknowledging that some hits are excellent while others are poor.
The key argument is that entertainment can be delivered diversely. Preferences differ. There is no one way to produce music or even five-day cricket.
The Peerless Spectrum of The Long Game
The traditional format boasts peerless complexity. It's difficult to think of another sport where the outcome is so dictated by external factors.
The weather, the session, the ball – the factors are countless. Above all is the playing surface.
If the format is an artistic pursuit, the pitch is the canvas on which the cricketers craft their legacy.
A Broken-Down Battle: The MCG Match
The Boxing Day fixture between the two sides was the game deconstructed, the traditional sport taken to pieces and reassembled in abstract form.
It must be stated this is not a justification of the surface which yielded a victory and the another short match of the series.
Having a thick layer on the pitch, resulting in numerous dismissals tumbling in less than two days, is not a balanced duel between batter and bowler.
A Varied History: The Nature of Test Cricket
But any idea this was a diminished spectacle, one that should be qualified as illegitimate, is mistaken.
Test cricket is a varied portfolio, over two thousand matches and counting. Sometimes, like in Melbourne, the ball behaves unpredictably for the fast men. In contrast, it grips and turns on a dry surface. Sometimes, the pitch is dead, other times it bounces unevenly.
The thrillers are all the more thrilling because of the time devoted elsewhere.
Problem Solving: The True Test
Some factors are tolerated more readily than others.
The debate in at the MCG was that the contest was weighted unfairly towards the bowlers. That the top batters were prevented from demonstrating their skill.
Test cricket is about problem solving – reading the wicket and adapting appropriately. The best individual innings were made by world-class stars. One line-up committed more errors than the other, and thus were defeated.
Unbridled Joy: For Those Who Waited
Try telling the fans who have suffered years of defeat that this lacked spectacle.
In a corner of the MCG, countless fans made noise and sang their songs, generating a party atmosphere in a stronghold of Australian cricket.
There was optimism as the bowlers excelled, momentum when players scored quickly, and pure joy when the win was confirmed.
Polar Opposites: The Range of Test Matches
The MCG has form with difficult wickets. Eight years ago, a match there featured a pitch with the excitement of a a damp squib.
That fixture was a slog, with minimal action and slow play. This recent match and that drawn affair are diametrically opposed points of the range – neither perfect, yet historical weight can be ascribed to them.
At this stage into the Ashes contest, it is the shortest games that will remain iconic in the history books.
"It's not the demise of the long game at all," said a past champion. "The people who have been fortunate to see these short time have been experienced some real entertainment. An unusual spectacle."
Signs of Progress: Looking Ahead
In the build-up to this match, the captain spoke like a man carrying the enormous pressure on his mind.
The team responded for him, restoring the positive demeanor to his face.
Different players delivered with key contributions. These are baby steps, not nearly enough to guarantee long-term stability, but a starting point to use as a platform.
In the end, this Melbourne victory takes its place among other memorable performances in dead rubbers.
As the supporters departed into a glorious Melbourne evening, the players gathered on the outfield to begin their own festivities.
Celebrate the win, lads. You've earned this one.
