'Was That Not a Show?' The Reason a Shortened Test Remained Every Bit a Genuine Test.

Within a display cabinet on the elevated floor of the Melbourne Cricket Ground sits a neon pink outfit donned by the entertainer. The concert in front of a hundred thousand fans was hailed as a triumph.

You might not appreciate the performer. Perhaps you believe he is the greatest gift to music the world has ever seen. You might take a balanced view, admitting that some tracks are excellent while others are terrible.

The key argument is that enjoyment can be delivered diversely. You like what you like. There is no one way to create music or even Test cricket.

The Incomparable Variety of Test Cricket

The five-day game boasts incomparable variety. It's difficult to think of another sport where the playing is so dependent on the environment.

The climate, the hour of play, the cricket ball – the variables are numerous. Crucially is the wicket.

If the long game is an artistic pursuit, the wicket is the foundation on which the cricketers paint their masterpiece.

A Test of Cubism: The Melbourne Spectacle

The Boxing Day fixture between the two sides was Test cricket cubism, the great game taken to pieces and stuck back together in a bizarre shape.

Let's be clear, this isn't a endorsement of the wicket which resulted in a triumph and the another sub-three-day finish of the Ashes battle.

Leaving 10mm of grass on the surface, resulting in 36 wickets tumbling in less than six sessions, is not a fair contest between bat and ball.

A Varied History: The Core of Test Cricket

But any suggestion this was a inferior show, one that should be qualified as not a proper Test, is wide of the mark.

The long game is a rich tapestry, a long history and ongoing. On occasion, as seen at the MCG, the ball moves excessively for the fast men. Sometimes, it spins sharply on a dust bowl. At other venues, the pitch is flat as a pancake, other times it bounces unevenly.

The close matches are all the more thrilling owing to the investment committed elsewhere.

Adjustment: The Core Skill

Some factors are tolerated more readily than others.

The contention in Melbourne was that the contest was weighted unfairly towards the bowlers. That the top batters were unable from playing their natural game.

The format is about adapting to challenges – interpreting the conditions and adjusting effectively. The two highest individual scores were made by acknowledged stars. One line-up made more mistakes than the other, and thus ended up second best.

Pure Elation: The Supporters' View

Try telling the devotees who have endured a long drought that this wasn't compelling.

In one section of the ground, countless fans celebrated and sang their songs, producing a party atmosphere in a heartland of national pride.

There was belief as the attack dominated, advantage when the top order responded, and pure joy when the result was achieved.

Polar Opposites: The Range of Test Matches

The MCG has a history with controversial surfaces. In the past, a match there featured a strip with the character of a a non-event.

That fixture was a grind, with minimal action and slow play. The two-day game and that slow Test are diametrically opposed points of the spectrum – neither ideal, yet significance can be found in them.

At this stage into the current series, it is the shortest games that will be most remembered in the collective consciousness.

"This isn't the end of Test cricket at all," observed a past champion. "Fans who have been fortunate to see these short time have been given some genuine drama. Different entertainment."

Signs of Progress: A Glimmer of Hope

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

The players responded for him, restoring the positive demeanor to his face.

Different players stepped up with crucial roles. These are baby steps, certainly not enough to secure long-term success, but a starting point to develop from.

In the end, this Melbourne victory takes its place among other notable performances in dead rubbers.

As the fans left into a beautiful night, the team assembled on the outfield to commence their own festivities.

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