Within a display cabinet on the third floor of the MCG sits a vibrant pink outfit donned by the entertainer. His show in front of 100,024 fans was considered a major hit.
You might not appreciate Robbie Williams. Perhaps you believe he is the finest offering to music the world has ever seen. Alternatively, you may hold a middle ground, admitting that some hits are fantastic while others are poor.
The key argument is that entertainment can be delivered diversely. Tastes vary. There is not a single method to craft literature or even the longest format.
The Unrivalled Depth of Test Cricket
Test cricket boasts unrivalled depth. It's difficult to think of another sport where the contest is so reliant upon the environment.
The elements, the time of day, the ball – the factors are countless. Above all is the playing surface.
If Test cricket is art, the strip is the blank slate on which the athletes craft their legacy.
An Abstract Contest: The Fourth Test
The fourth Ashes Test between Australia and England was an abstract version of cricket, the traditional sport dismantled and stuck back together in an unusual manner.
Let's be clear, this isn't a endorsement of the surface which produced a triumph and the second two-day Test of the Ashes battle.
Leaving 10mm of grass on the wicket, leading to 36 wickets tumbling in less than a brief period, is not an even battle between bat and ball.
A Diverse Legacy: The Core of Test Cricket
But any suggestion this was a inferior show, one that should be marked with an asterisk as inauthentic, is wide of the mark.
The format is a diverse canvas, over two thousand matches and ongoing. Sometimes, as witnessed recently, the cricket ball moves excessively for the seamers. Sometimes, it spins sharply on a dry surface. Sometimes, the pitch is dead, other times it bounces unevenly.
The close matches are all the more thrilling due to the investment made in other matches.
Adjustment: The True Test
Some factors are accepted more readily than others.
The argument in at the MCG was that the equilibrium was skewed excessively towards the attack. That the best players were hindered from showcasing their talents.
Test cricket is about adapting to challenges – reading the situation and adjusting accordingly. The top two individual scores were made by recognized batters. One team made more mistakes than the other, and thus ended up second best.
Sheer Celebration: For Those Who Waited
Try telling the supporters who have endured a long drought that this wasn't compelling.
Among the crowd of the stadium, countless fans celebrated and created an atmosphere, producing a festive mood in a stronghold of national pride.
There was belief as the bowlers surged, impetus when batters responded, and pure joy when the result was achieved.
Extreme Ends: The Range of Test Matches
The venue has form with controversial surfaces. Eight years ago, a Test there featured a strip with the character of a pulled Christmas cracker.
That contest was a grind, with limited drama and slow play. The two-day game and that drawn affair are diametrically opposed points of the spectrum – one is not more the standard, yet significance can be found in them.
Four Tests into the current series, it is the quick finishes that will be most remembered in the collective consciousness.
"It's not the death of the format at all," said a past champion. "Spectators who have been fortunate to see these two days have been given some real entertainment. Different entertainment."
Baby Steps: Looking Ahead
In the preparation to this match, the captain addressed the media like a man carrying the enormous pressure on his back.
The squad delivered for him, bringing back the positive demeanor to his countenance.
New faces performed with vital performances. These are baby steps, not nearly enough to secure long-term stability, but a foundation to build on.
In the end, this Melbourne victory takes its place among other notable performances in dead rubbers.
As the supporters slipped away into a glorious Melbourne evening, the squad congregated on the outfield to begin their own festivities.
Celebrate the win, boys. You've earned this one.
