Displayed inside a display cabinet on the elevated floor of the MCG sits a neon pink suit performed in by the pop star. His concert in front of a massive crowd of fans was hailed as a major hit.
It's possible you enjoy the performer. Maybe you feel he is the ultimate present to music in history. Alternatively, you may hold a balanced view, acknowledging that some hits are excellent while others are terrible.
The key argument is that amusement can manifest in countless ways. You like what you like. There is not a single method to produce music or even Test cricket.
The Peerless Spectrum of Test Cricket
The traditional format boasts unrivalled depth. It is hard to think of another sport where the outcome is so reliant upon conditions.
The weather, the time of day, the red ball – the list is endless. Crucially is the playing surface.
If the long game is a form of art, the strip is the foundation on which the players paint their masterpiece.
A Broken-Down Battle: The MCG Match
The Boxing Day fixture between Australia and England was Test cricket cubism, the great game taken to pieces and reassembled in a bizarre shape.
This is not a justification of the wicket which yielded a win and the another short match of the Ashes battle.
Leaving excessive grass on the wicket, leading to 36 wickets tumbling in less than two days, is not a fair contest between batter and bowler.
A Diverse Legacy: The Nature of Test Cricket
But any suggestion this was a diminished spectacle, one that should be footnoted as inauthentic, is incorrect.
Test cricket is a rich tapestry, a long history and ongoing. On occasion, as witnessed recently, the cricket ball behaves unpredictably for the pace bowlers. Other times, it grips and turns on a dust bowl. Sometimes, the pitch is flat as a pancake, other times it spits like a cobra.
The close matches are particularly captivating due to the time committed elsewhere.
Adjustment: The True Test
Certain variables are embraced more easily than others.
The argument in during the match was that the contest was weighted unfairly towards the fielding side. That the best players were prevented from showcasing their talents.
Test cricket is about adapting to challenges – interpreting the situation and responding appropriately. The two highest individual scores were made by recognized stars. One side committed more errors than the other, and thus lost.
Pure Elation: The Fan Perspective
Go and inform the supporters who have suffered years of defeat that this lacked spectacle.
Among the crowd of the stadium, a sea of people celebrated and sang their songs, fostering a festive mood in a bastion of national pride.
There was belief as the fielding side surged, momentum when the top order scored quickly, and pure joy when the result was achieved.
Extreme Ends: The Variety of Test Matches
The MCG has previous experience with pitch problems. Eight years ago, a Test there featured a pitch with the character of a pulled Christmas cracker.
That fixture was a grind, with few wickets and interminable tedium. The two-day game and that slow Test are diametrically opposed points of the spectrum – neither perfect, yet significance can be ascribed to them.
At this stage into the ongoing battle, it is the two-day matches that will live longest in the collective consciousness.
"This isn't the death of the long game at all," commented a former player. "Spectators who have been fortunate to see these two days have been given some real entertainment. Different entertainment."
Signs of Progress: Looking Ahead
In the preparation to this match, the skipper spoke like a man carrying the heavy burden on his mind.
The team delivered for him, restoring the joy to his countenance.
Different players stepped up with crucial roles. These are small positives, hardly enough to ensure long-term stability, but a starting point to use as a platform.
In the end, this MCG win takes its place among other memorable performances in dead rubbers.
As the fans slipped away into a stunning sunset, the players congregated on the outfield to start their own enjoyment.
Savour the moment, boys. It's well deserved.