'Are You Not Entertained?' Why a Two-Day Fixture Remained Every Bit a Proper Cricket Test.

In a glass case on the third floor of the iconic Melbourne stadium sits a electric pink outfit worn by the entertainer. His concert in front of a massive crowd of attendees was seen as a success.

Perhaps you don't appreciate his music. Perhaps you believe he is the ultimate present to music in history. You might take a balanced view, admitting that some hits are fantastic while others are terrible.

The central idea is that enjoyment can manifest in countless ways. You like what you like. There is no one way to craft literature or even Test cricket.

The Unrivalled Depth of The Test Format

The five-day game boasts incomparable variety. One struggles to think of another sport where the outcome is so reliant upon external factors.

The weather, the hour of play, the ball – the list is endless. Crucially is the pitch.

If Test cricket is a form of art, the pitch is the foundation on which the cricketers paint their masterpiece.

A Broken-Down Battle: The MCG Match

The Boxing Day fixture between Australia and England was an abstract version of cricket, the traditional sport broken apart and stuck back together in an unusual manner.

This is not a justification of the wicket which produced a triumph and the second two-day Test of the contest.

Allowing a thick layer on the surface, causing numerous dismissals tumbling in less than two days, is not a fair contest between bat and ball.

A Diverse Legacy: The Essence of Test Cricket

But any notion this was a diminished spectacle, one that should be footnoted as illegitimate, is mistaken.

The format is a varied portfolio, 2,615 parts and counting. At times, like in Melbourne, the ball does all sorts for the fast men. Other times, it grips and turns on a dust bowl. At other venues, the pitch is flat as a pancake, other times it bounces unevenly.

The exciting finishes are particularly captivating because of the time committed elsewhere.

Problem Solving: The Core Skill

Specific conditions are tolerated more easily than others.

The debate in during the match was that the balance was tipped too far towards the bowlers. That the skilled individuals were hindered from demonstrating their skill.

This level of cricket is about problem solving – assessing the situation and responding accordingly. The best individual innings were made by world-class stars. One line-up made more mistakes than the other, and thus were defeated.

Sheer Celebration: The Supporters' View

Go and inform the fans who have experienced 18 winless matches that this was not entertaining.

In one section of the ground, a sea of people waved their flags and chanted, generating a festive mood in a bastion of sport.

There was optimism as the attack excelled, impetus when players responded, and rapturous celebration when the victory was secured.

Polar Opposites: The Variety of Test Matches

The Melbourne has form with controversial surfaces. Previously, a Test there featured a pitch with the excitement of a pulled Christmas cracker.

That match was a marathon, with limited drama and interminable tedium. The two-day game and that drawn affair are polar opposites of the spectrum – neither the standard, yet value can be found in them.

Four Tests into the Ashes contest, it is the quick finishes that will be most remembered in the memory.

"Far from being the demise of the long game at all," commented a veteran. "Fans who have been lucky enough to see these two days have been treated to some real entertainment. A unique show."

Baby Steps: Looking Ahead

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

The players responded for him, bringing back the joy to his countenance.

Different players delivered with vital performances. These are baby steps, not nearly enough to secure long-term stability, but something to build on.

In the end, this triumph joins other historic performances in dead rubbers.

As the supporters departed into a beautiful night, the squad assembled on the outfield to commence their own celebrations.

Celebrate the win, men. This victory was hard-fought.