Displayed inside a display cabinet on the upper level of the Melbourne Cricket Ground sits a electric pink suit donned by the pop star. His concert in front of a hundred thousand fans was hailed as a success.
It's possible you enjoy Robbie Williams. Maybe you feel he is the ultimate present to music known to man. Or you could adopt a balanced view, admitting that some songs are fantastic while others are terrible.
The central idea is that entertainment can take many forms. You like what you like. There is no universal formula to create art or even the longest format.
The Peerless Spectrum of Test Cricket
The traditional format boasts peerless complexity. It's difficult to think of another sport where the contest is so reliant upon the environment.
The weather, the session, the ball – the variables are numerous. Above all is the playing surface.
If Test cricket is an artistic pursuit, the strip is the blank slate on which the players craft their legacy.
An Abstract Contest: The Fourth Test
The fourth Ashes Test between the two sides 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 justification of the pitch which produced a win and the another sub-three-day finish of the Ashes battle.
Having excessive grass on the pitch, causing a cascade of wickets being taken in less than two days, is not a fair contest 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 not a proper Test, is mistaken.
The format is a diverse canvas, a long history and still growing. On occasion, as seen at the MCG, the cricket ball moves excessively for the pace bowlers. In contrast, it turns square on a dust bowl. Sometimes, the pitch is flat as a pancake, other times it explodes.
The thrillers are even more exciting because of the investment made elsewhere.
Adjustment: The True Test
Certain variables are tolerated more easily than others.
The argument in during the match was that the contest was tipped too far towards the bowlers. That the skilled individuals were hindered from demonstrating their skill.
The format is about finding solutions – reading the conditions and adapting accordingly. The top two individual innings were made by world-class players. One team committed more errors than the other, and thus lost.
Unbridled Joy: The Supporters' View
Try telling the fans who have suffered 18 winless matches that this wasn't compelling.
In one section of the MCG, thousands waved their flags and chanted, generating a party atmosphere in a heartland of sport.
There was belief as the bowlers excelled, momentum when the top order responded, and rapturous celebration when the result was secured.
Polar Opposites: The Range of Test Matches
The MCG has previous experience with controversial surfaces. Previously, a match there featured a wicket with the character of a a damp squib.
That contest was a grind, with few wickets and endless boredom. The latest encounter and that drawn affair are diametrically opposed points of the spectrum – neither perfect, yet significance can be attached to each.
Four Tests into the ongoing battle, it is the shortest games that will remain iconic in the memory.
"This isn't the death of the long game at all," observed a former player. "The people who have been fortunate to see these short time have been experienced some fantastic sport. A unique show."
Baby Steps: Looking Ahead
In the lead-in to this Test, the captain spoke like a man carrying the enormous pressure on his shoulders.
The team delivered for him, bringing back the positive demeanor to his persona.
Different players delivered with crucial roles. These are small positives, certainly not enough to guarantee long-term stability, but something to use as a platform.
Ultimately, this triumph is added to other historic performances in similar circumstances.
As the supporters left into a beautiful night, the players congregated on the turf to commence their own celebrations.
Enjoy the drink, men. You've earned this one.
