'Was That Not a Show?' Why a Shortened Test Was No Less a Proper Cricket Test.

Within a glass case on the upper level of the iconic Melbourne stadium sits a electric pink outfit worn by Robbie Williams. His concert in front of a hundred thousand attendees was hailed as a success.

It's possible you like Robbie Williams. Maybe you feel he is the finest offering to music the world has ever seen. You might take a middle ground, admitting that some tracks are belting while others are awful.

The central idea is that amusement can manifest in countless ways. Preferences differ. There is no universal formula to produce literature or even the longest format.

The Unrivalled Depth of The Test Format

Test cricket boasts peerless complexity. One struggles to think of another sport where the outcome is so dictated by external factors.

The elements, the session, the cricket ball – the factors are countless. Crucially is the playing surface.

If the format is art, the pitch is the canvas on which the cricketers create their art.

A Test of Cubism: The Melbourne Spectacle

The fourth Ashes Test between Australia and England was the game deconstructed, the great game taken to pieces and reassembled in an unusual manner.

This is not a defence of the wicket which resulted in a win and the another short match of the series.

Allowing a thick layer on the pitch, causing numerous dismissals being taken in less than a brief period, is not an even battle between bat and ball.

A Varied History: The Essence of Test Cricket

But any notion this was a diminished spectacle, one that should be marked with an asterisk as inauthentic, is mistaken.

The long game is a varied portfolio, 2,615 parts and counting. On occasion, like in Melbourne, the ball moves excessively for the fast men. Sometimes, it turns square on a spinning track. Sometimes, the pitch is unresponsive, other times it bounces unevenly.

The thrillers are all the more thrilling owing to the investment devoted elsewhere.

Problem Solving: The True Test

Certain variables are embraced more readily than others.

The argument in Melbourne was that the balance was skewed excessively towards the bowlers. That the skilled individuals were hindered from showcasing their talents.

This level of cricket is about adapting to challenges – interpreting the situation and responding accordingly. The two highest individual scores were made by recognized players. One line-up was less disciplined than the other, and thus were defeated.

Pure Elation: The Fan Perspective

Go and inform the supporters who have suffered years of defeat that this lacked spectacle.

Among the crowd of the ground, a sea of people celebrated and chanted, fostering a festive mood in a heartland of Australian cricket.

There was belief as the attack excelled, momentum when players responded, and pure joy when the victory was secured.

Polar Opposites: The Spectrum of Test Matches

The MCG has a history with controversial surfaces. Eight years ago, a game there featured a pitch with all the life of a a non-event.

That contest was a slog, with limited drama and interminable tedium. The two-day game and that drawn affair are extreme ends of the spectrum – neither perfect, yet historical weight can be attached to both.

Four Tests into the current series, it is the shortest games that will be most remembered in the history books.

"This isn't the end of the format at all," commented a veteran. "Fans who have been fortunate to see these two days have been given some real entertainment. Different entertainment."

Baby Steps: Building for the Future

In the lead-in to this match, the captain addressed the media like a man carrying the weight of the world on his mind.

The squad responded for him, reinstating the smile to his countenance.

Different players stepped up with crucial roles. These are incremental gains, certainly not enough to guarantee long-term stability, but a starting point to use as a platform.

In the end, this triumph takes its place among other memorable performances in similar circumstances.

As the supporters departed into a glorious Melbourne evening, the players congregated on the outfield to start their own enjoyment.

Savour the moment, men. This victory was hard-fought.