Displayed inside a showcase on the third floor of the iconic Melbourne stadium rests a electric pink ensemble donned by the pop star. His concert in front of 100,024 attendees was considered a major hit.
It's possible you appreciate his music. You might think he is the greatest gift to music known to man. Alternatively, you may hold a middle ground, conceding that some tracks are fantastic while others are terrible.
The central idea is that amusement can manifest in countless ways. Preferences differ. There is not a single method to craft music or even the longest format.
The Unrivalled Depth of The Long Game
The five-day game boasts incomparable variety. It's difficult to think of another sport where the playing is so reliant upon external factors.
The weather, the hour of play, the ball – the factors are countless. Crucially is the pitch.
If the long game is a form of art, the strip is the foundation on which the players create their art.
An Abstract Contest: The MCG Match
The recent Melbourne match between Australia and England was an abstract version of cricket, the traditional sport dismantled and stuck back together in abstract form.
This is not a defence of the pitch which resulted in a win and the another sub-three-day finish of the contest.
Leaving excessive grass on the surface, resulting in a cascade of wickets falling in less than six sessions, is not a balanced duel between bat and ball.
A Rich Tapestry: The Nature of Test Cricket
But any suggestion this was a inferior show, one that should be footnoted as not a proper Test, is wide of the mark.
The long game is a rich tapestry, 2,615 parts and ongoing. Sometimes, like in Melbourne, the cricket ball does all sorts for the fast men. Other times, it grips and turns on a dust bowl. Sometimes, the pitch is dead, other times it bounces unevenly.
The close matches are even more exciting due to the patience committed elsewhere.
Problem Solving: The Core Skill
Some factors are tolerated more readily than others.
The argument in Melbourne was that the contest was weighted unfairly towards the bowlers. That the top batters were unable from playing their natural game.
Test cricket is about adapting to challenges – reading the conditions and adapting accordingly. The best individual contributions were made by recognized players. One line-up made more mistakes than the other, and thus were defeated.
Sheer Celebration: The Supporters' View
Go and inform the fans who have endured a long drought that this was not entertaining.
In a corner of the ground, a sea of people made noise and sang their songs, producing a festive mood in a stronghold of Australian cricket.
There was hope as the bowlers dominated, momentum when players fought back, and pure joy when the result was achieved.
Polar Opposites: The Spectrum of Test Matches
The venue has form with difficult wickets. Eight years ago, a game there featured a pitch with all the life of a a non-event.
That fixture was a slog, with limited drama and slow play. The two-day game and that slow Test are extreme ends of the range – one is not more the standard, yet value can be ascribed to each.
Deep into the series into the ongoing battle, it is the quick finishes that will live longest in the history books.
"It's not the demise of Test cricket at all," said a veteran. "Spectators who have been privileged to see these short time have been given some fantastic sport. A unique show."
Small Victories: A Glimmer of Hope
In the build-up to this Test, the skipper addressed the media like a man carrying the weight of the world on his shoulders.
The players protected him, restoring the joy to his countenance.
Different players performed with crucial roles. These are incremental gains, hardly enough to secure long-term success, but something to develop from.
In the end, this triumph is added to other notable performances in dead rubbers.
As the supporters departed into a glorious Melbourne evening, the squad assembled on the outfield to begin their own enjoyment.
Celebrate the win, lads. You've earned this one.
