In a glass case on the upper level of the Melbourne Cricket Ground rests a neon pink suit performed in by the entertainer. The show in front of 100,024 attendees was seen as a success.
Perhaps you don't like his music. You might think he is the finest offering to music in history. Alternatively, you may hold a middle ground, admitting that some hits are belting while others are awful.
The point being is that entertainment can be delivered diversely. You like what you like. There is no one way to craft literature or even five-day cricket.
The Unrivalled Depth of Test Cricket
The traditional format boasts unrivalled depth. One struggles to think of another sport where the outcome is so reliant upon conditions.
The elements, the session, the ball – the variables are numerous. Most important is the wicket.
If Test cricket is art, the wicket is the blank slate on which the athletes paint their masterpiece.
A Test of Cubism: The MCG Match
The fourth Ashes Test between the two sides was Test cricket cubism, the great game broken apart and stuck back together in abstract form.
Let's be clear, this isn't a endorsement of the wicket which yielded a victory and the another sub-three-day finish of the contest.
Leaving a thick layer on the pitch, leading to 36 wickets tumbling in less than six sessions, is not an even battle between offense and defense.
A Diverse Legacy: The Essence of Test Cricket
But any suggestion this was a diminished spectacle, one that should be marked with an asterisk as inauthentic, is mistaken.
The long game is a diverse canvas, a long history and still growing. At times, as seen at the MCG, the ball behaves unpredictably for the fast men. Sometimes, it turns square on a dry surface. Sometimes, the pitch is unresponsive, other times it bounces unevenly.
The thrillers are even more exciting owing to the patience devoted during quieter periods.
Adjustment: The Core Skill
Some factors are accepted more easily than others.
The contention in at the MCG was that the contest was weighted unfairly towards the attack. That the skilled individuals were prevented from playing their natural game.
Test cricket is about finding solutions – interpreting the situation and adapting effectively. The top two individual contributions were made by acknowledged stars. One side committed more errors than the other, and thus were defeated.
Unbridled Joy: The Fan Perspective
Attempt to convince the devotees who have experienced 18 winless matches that this wasn't compelling.
In one section of the stadium, thousands celebrated and sang their songs, producing a festive mood in a bastion of Australian cricket.
There was belief as the fielding side excelled, momentum when batters scored quickly, and pure joy when the victory was secured.
Polar Opposites: The Range of Test Matches
The venue has a history with pitch problems. In the past, a game there featured a strip with the excitement of a pulled Christmas cracker.
That match was a grind, with limited drama and interminable tedium. This recent match and that previous match are polar opposites of the spectrum – neither the standard, yet significance can be ascribed to both.
Four Tests into the ongoing battle, it is the two-day matches that will be most remembered in the collective consciousness.
"This isn't the death of Test cricket at all," observed a former player. "Fans who have been privileged to see these short time have been treated to some genuine drama. A unique show."
Baby Steps: A Glimmer of Hope
In the lead-in to this Test, the leader addressed the media like a man carrying the enormous pressure on his back.
The team protected him, reinstating the joy to his persona.
Emerging talents delivered with vital performances. These are small positives, certainly not enough to ensure long-term futures, but a foundation to develop from.
In the end, this triumph joins other historic performances in similar circumstances.
As the supporters departed into a stunning sunset, the squad assembled on the turf to start their own enjoyment.
Celebrate the win, lads. This victory was hard-fought.