'Did It Not Captivate?' The Reason a Two-Day Match Was No Less a Proper Test Match.

Displayed inside a display cabinet on the upper level of the iconic Melbourne stadium sits a electric pink outfit performed in by the pop star. His concert in front of a massive crowd of attendees was hailed as a triumph.

Perhaps you don't like Robbie Williams. Maybe you feel he is the greatest gift to music in history. Or you could adopt a middle ground, acknowledging that some tracks are excellent while others are awful.

The central idea is that entertainment can take many forms. You like what you like. There is no one way to craft literature or even five-day cricket.

The Incomparable Variety of The Test Format

The five-day game boasts incomparable variety. It is hard to think of another sport where the outcome is so dictated by conditions.

The elements, the hour of play, the cricket ball – the list is endless. Crucially is the playing surface.

If the long game is a form of art, the pitch is the foundation on which the players paint their masterpiece.

A Broken-Down Battle: The MCG Match

The Boxing Day fixture between the two sides was the game deconstructed, the great game taken to pieces and reconstructed in an unusual manner.

Let's be clear, this isn't a endorsement of the wicket which resulted in a victory and the another short match of the contest.

Having a thick layer on the wicket, causing a cascade of wickets being taken in less than two days, is not a fair contest between offense and defense.

A Diverse Legacy: The Nature of Test Cricket

But any suggestion this was a lesser event, one that should be footnoted as not a proper Test, is incorrect.

The format is a diverse canvas, 2,615 parts and still growing. Sometimes, like in Melbourne, the ball behaves unpredictably for the fast men. Sometimes, it turns square on a dry surface. At other venues, the pitch is dead, other times it spits like a cobra.

The exciting finishes are all the more thrilling due to the time made in other matches.

Adjustment: The Core Skill

Some factors are tolerated more easily than others.

The argument in during the match was that the balance was skewed excessively towards the attack. That the skilled individuals were hindered from playing their natural game.

Test cricket is about finding solutions – assessing the conditions and adapting effectively. The two highest individual innings were made by recognized stars. One team committed more errors than the other, and thus ended up second best.

Pure Elation: The Fan Perspective

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

In one section of the stadium, countless fans celebrated and sang their songs, producing a festive mood in a stronghold of Australian cricket.

There was optimism as the fielding side excelled, momentum when players fought back, and pure joy when the victory was confirmed.

Contrasting Examples: The Range of Test Matches

The MCG has form with pitch problems. Previously, a game there featured a wicket with all the life of a a non-event.

That contest was a slog, with few wickets and endless boredom. The latest encounter and that slow Test are diametrically opposed points of the range – both are not the standard, yet historical weight can be found in them.

Four Tests into the Ashes contest, it is the two-day matches that will live longest in the collective consciousness.

"This isn't the death of Test cricket at all," said a veteran. "Fans who have been fortunate to see these two days have been given some fantastic sport. A unique show."

Baby Steps: Looking Ahead

In the lead-in to this Test, the captain spoke like a man carrying the heavy burden on his back.

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

Emerging talents stepped up with key contributions. These are small positives, certainly not enough to ensure long-term success, but something to build on.

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

As the fans left into a glorious Melbourne evening, the team gathered on the outfield to begin their own enjoyment.

Celebrate the win, men. You've earned this one.