Displayed inside a showcase on the third floor of the iconic Melbourne stadium is housed a neon pink suit worn by the pop star. His performance in front of 100,024 fans was seen as a major hit.
Perhaps you don't appreciate the performer. You might think he is the greatest gift to music known to man. Alternatively, you may hold a reasonable stance, conceding that some songs are belting while others are terrible.
The key argument is that enjoyment can take many forms. Tastes vary. There is no one way to produce literature or even the longest format.
The Unrivalled Depth of Test Cricket
Test cricket boasts peerless complexity. It is hard to think of another sport where the playing is so dictated by external factors.
The climate, the time of day, the red ball – the list is endless. Above all is the pitch.
If the long game is art, the strip is the blank slate on which the athletes create their art.
A Test of Cubism: The Melbourne Spectacle
The recent Melbourne match between Australia and England was an abstract version of cricket, the traditional sport taken to pieces and reassembled in abstract form.
This is not a defence of the surface which yielded a triumph and the second two-day Test of the contest.
Allowing 10mm of grass on the surface, causing 36 wickets being taken in less than two days, is not a fair contest between bat and ball.
A Varied History: The Essence of Test Cricket
But any suggestion this was a diminished spectacle, one that should be footnoted as not a proper Test, is incorrect.
The format is a varied portfolio, a long history and ongoing. At times, like in Melbourne, the cricket ball moves excessively for the pace bowlers. Other times, it turns square on a spinning track. Sometimes, the pitch is unresponsive, other times it bounces unevenly.
The thrillers are even more exciting due to the patience made elsewhere.
Adaptation: The True Test
Some factors are tolerated more freely than others.
The debate in during the match was that the contest was skewed excessively towards the bowlers. That the top batters were hindered from playing their natural game.
The format is about adapting to challenges – assessing the conditions and responding effectively. The best individual scores were made by world-class stars. One team was less disciplined than the other, and thus were defeated.
Sheer Celebration: For Those Who Waited
Try telling the fans who have endured 18 winless matches that this lacked spectacle.
In a corner of the ground, a sea of people celebrated and sang their songs, fostering a carnival vibe in a bastion of sport.
There was hope as the attack excelled, momentum when batters responded, and rapturous celebration when the result was confirmed.
Polar Opposites: The Range of Test Matches
The MCG has form with pitch problems. Previously, a game there featured a strip with the excitement of a pulled Christmas cracker.
That match was a marathon, with few wickets and endless boredom. The latest encounter and that slow Test are diametrically opposed points of the scale – one is not more ideal, yet significance can be attached to them.
Deep into the series into the ongoing battle, it is the shortest games that will remain iconic in the memory.
"It's not the end of the long game at all," observed a past champion. "Fans who have been privileged to see these 48 hours have been given some fantastic sport. A unique show."
Signs of Progress: A Glimmer of Hope
In the preparation to this Test, the captain talked like a man carrying the enormous pressure on his mind.
The team responded for him, reinstating the positive demeanor to his face.
Emerging talents delivered with vital performances. These are small positives, not nearly enough to secure long-term success, but something to use as a platform.
Ultimately, this triumph is added to other memorable performances in similar circumstances.
As the supporters left into a glorious Melbourne evening, the squad gathered on the outfield to start their own festivities.
Savour the moment, men. You've earned this one.
