'Are You Not Entertained?' The Reason a Two-Day Test Deserved Its Status as a Genuine Test.

Within a display cabinet on the upper level of the iconic Melbourne stadium is housed a vibrant pink outfit worn by the entertainer. His concert in front of a hundred thousand fans was considered a success.

You might not enjoy Robbie Williams. Perhaps you believe he is the ultimate present to music the world has ever seen. You might take a balanced view, admitting that some songs are fantastic while others are awful.

The key argument is that enjoyment can manifest in countless ways. Preferences differ. There is no one way to create music or even the longest format.

The Incomparable Variety of The Long Game

Test cricket boasts incomparable variety. It's difficult to think of another sport where the playing is so reliant upon external factors.

The climate, the time of day, the cricket ball – the variables are numerous. Most important is the pitch.

If the format is an artistic pursuit, the strip is the foundation on which the athletes paint their masterpiece.

An Abstract Contest: The Fourth Test

The recent Melbourne match between the old rivals was an abstract version of cricket, the traditional sport broken apart and reassembled in a bizarre shape.

It must be stated this is not a defence of the pitch which resulted in a victory and the another sub-three-day finish of the Ashes battle.

Leaving excessive grass on the surface, leading to 36 wickets being taken in less than two days, is not an even battle between batter and bowler.

A Rich Tapestry: The Core of Test Cricket

But any idea this was a inferior show, one that should be marked with an asterisk as not a proper Test, is wide of the mark.

Test cricket is a rich tapestry, a long history and counting. At times, as witnessed recently, the cricket ball behaves unpredictably for the seamers. Other times, it grips and turns on a dry surface. At other venues, the pitch is unresponsive, other times it explodes.

The exciting finishes are all the more thrilling owing to the investment committed during quieter periods.

Problem Solving: The True Test

Specific conditions are tolerated more easily than others.

The debate in at the MCG was that the balance was skewed excessively towards the fielding side. That the skilled individuals were prevented from demonstrating their skill.

Test cricket is about finding solutions – reading the conditions and adapting appropriately. The best individual scores were made by world-class players. One team made more mistakes than the other, and thus were defeated.

Unbridled Joy: The Fan Perspective

Try telling the fans who have experienced 18 winless matches that this was not entertaining.

Among the crowd of the stadium, a sea of people celebrated and chanted, fostering a party atmosphere in a bastion of Australian cricket.

There was belief as the bowlers surged, advantage when players fought back, and pure joy when the result was achieved.

Polar Opposites: The Range of Test Matches

The Melbourne has previous experience with difficult wickets. Eight years ago, a game there featured a pitch with all the life of a a non-event.

That fixture was a grind, with few wickets and slow play. This recent match and that slow Test are polar opposites of the scale – one is not more the standard, yet value can be found in both.

At this stage into the Ashes contest, it is the quick finishes that will remain iconic in the memory.

"It's not the end of the long game at all," observed a past champion. "Spectators who have been privileged to see these short time have been treated to some fantastic sport. A unique show."

Small Victories: Looking Ahead

In the preparation to this match, the captain talked like a man carrying the weight of the world on his back.

The players delivered for him, bringing back the smile to his countenance.

New faces performed with crucial roles. These are incremental gains, hardly enough to guarantee long-term success, but something to use as a platform.

In the end, this Melbourne victory joins other memorable performances in similar circumstances.

As the crowd left into a beautiful night, the team gathered on the field to begin their own festivities.

Enjoy the drink, lads. This victory was hard-fought.