'Are You Not Entertained?' Why a 48-Hour Fixture Deserved Its Status as a Proper Test Match.

Within a glass case on the third floor of the iconic Melbourne stadium rests a neon pink suit performed in by the entertainer. The show in front of 100,024 attendees was seen as a major hit.

It's possible you appreciate the performer. Perhaps you believe he is the greatest gift to music in history. Or you could adopt a reasonable stance, admitting that some songs are belting while others are awful.

The key argument is that enjoyment can manifest in countless ways. You like what you like. There is no universal formula to create music or even Test cricket.

The Unrivalled Depth of The Test Format

The traditional format boasts unrivalled depth. It is hard to think of another sport where the playing is so dictated by the environment.

The weather, the hour of play, the ball – the variables are numerous. Most important is the playing surface.

If the long game is art, the pitch is the blank slate on which the cricketers create their art.

An Abstract Contest: The Fourth Test

The fourth Ashes Test between Australia and England was Test cricket cubism, the established format dismantled and reconstructed in a bizarre shape.

It must be stated this is not a justification of the pitch which produced a win and the another short match of the series.

Having 10mm of grass on the pitch, leading to 36 wickets tumbling in less than two days, is not an even battle between bat and ball.

A Varied History: The Essence of Test Cricket

But any idea this was a diminished spectacle, one that should be footnoted as inauthentic, is wide of the mark.

Test cricket is a varied portfolio, 2,615 parts and ongoing. Sometimes, like in Melbourne, the ball moves excessively for the pace bowlers. Sometimes, it spins sharply on a spinning track. Sometimes, the pitch is unresponsive, other times it bounces unevenly.

The exciting finishes are particularly captivating owing to the patience devoted in other matches.

Adjustment: The Core Skill

Specific conditions are tolerated more freely than others.

The debate in at the MCG was that the contest was tipped too far towards the bowlers. That the top batters were hindered from showcasing their talents.

The format is about finding solutions – reading the wicket and adjusting appropriately. The best individual contributions were made by world-class players. One side was less disciplined than the other, and thus were defeated.

Unbridled Joy: The Fan Perspective

Attempt to convince the devotees who have suffered 18 winless matches that this lacked spectacle.

Among the crowd of the MCG, thousands waved their flags and created an atmosphere, generating a festive mood in a stronghold of national pride.

There was hope as the fielding side surged, momentum when batters responded, and unconditional love when the result was confirmed.

Polar Opposites: The Spectrum of Test Matches

The Melbourne has a history with controversial surfaces. Eight years ago, a Test there featured a wicket with the character of a a non-event.

That contest was a grind, with limited drama and endless boredom. This recent match and that drawn affair are extreme ends of the scale – both are not ideal, yet significance can be found in them.

Deep into the series into the ongoing battle, it is the two-day matches that will live longest in the memory.

"Far from being the end of Test cricket at all," commented a former player. "The people who have been privileged to see these two days have been experienced some fantastic sport. A unique show."

Baby Steps: A Glimmer of Hope

In the preparation to this match, the captain talked like a man carrying the heavy burden on his back.

The team delivered for him, reinstating the smile to his face.

Emerging talents stepped up with crucial roles. These are small positives, not nearly enough to guarantee long-term stability, but something to build on.

At the very least, this MCG win takes its place among other memorable performances in dead rubbers.

As the fans departed into a beautiful night, the players congregated on the outfield to commence their own enjoyment.

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