Within a display cabinet on the third floor of the MCG is housed a electric pink suit donned by the pop star. The performance in front of 100,024 attendees was considered a major hit.
It's possible you enjoy his music. Maybe you feel he is the finest offering to music known to man. You might take a balanced view, conceding that some hits are belting while others are awful.
The point being is that enjoyment can be delivered diversely. You like what you like. There is no universal formula to create literature or even five-day cricket.
The Incomparable Variety of The Long Game
The five-day game boasts peerless complexity. One struggles to think of another sport where the contest is so dictated by external factors.
The elements, the hour of play, the ball – the factors are countless. Crucially is the playing surface.
If the format is an artistic pursuit, the strip is the foundation on which the players paint their masterpiece.
A Broken-Down Battle: The MCG Match
The fourth Ashes Test between the old rivals was Test cricket cubism, the great game dismantled and stuck back together in abstract form.
It must be stated this is not a defence of the wicket which resulted in a victory and the second two-day Test of the Ashes battle.
Leaving a thick layer on the pitch, leading to a cascade of wickets falling in less than six sessions, is not an even battle between batter and bowler.
A Rich Tapestry: The Essence of Test Cricket
But any idea this was a diminished spectacle, one that should be qualified as not a proper Test, is mistaken.
The long game is a rich tapestry, a long history and still growing. At times, as witnessed recently, the cricket ball does all sorts for the fast men. In contrast, it grips and turns on a dust bowl. At other venues, the pitch is dead, other times it bounces unevenly.
The exciting finishes are even more exciting owing to the patience made during quieter periods.
Adjustment: The Core Skill
Certain variables are tolerated more easily than others.
The argument in during the match was that the equilibrium was skewed excessively towards the fielding side. That the top batters were hindered from demonstrating their skill.
This level of cricket is about problem solving – reading the conditions and adjusting appropriately. The top two individual contributions were made by world-class stars. One team made more mistakes than the other, and thus lost.
Pure Elation: The Fan Perspective
Try telling the devotees who have suffered a long drought that this was not entertaining.
In one section of the MCG, countless fans celebrated and chanted, generating a party atmosphere in a stronghold of sport.
There was optimism as the bowlers dominated, impetus when players fought back, and unconditional love when the victory was achieved.
Polar Opposites: The Range of Test Matches
The venue has previous experience with pitch problems. In the past, a game there featured a wicket with all the life of a pulled Christmas cracker.
That match was a marathon, with limited drama and endless boredom. The two-day game and that slow Test are polar opposites of the scale – neither ideal, yet significance can be ascribed to them.
Four Tests into the ongoing battle, it is the shortest games that will remain iconic in the collective consciousness.
"It's not the demise of the long game at all," said a veteran. "The people who have been fortunate to see these two days have been treated to some fantastic sport. An unusual spectacle."
Baby Steps: Looking Ahead
In the build-up to this Test, the skipper spoke like a man carrying the weight of the world on his mind.
The players responded for him, reinstating the joy to his persona.
New faces 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 MCG win is added to other memorable performances in similar circumstances.
As the fans slipped away into a beautiful night, the players assembled on the turf to start their own celebrations.
Enjoy the drink, lads. It's well deserved.
