'Did It Not Captivate?' Why a 48-Hour Match Remained Every Bit a Proper Test Match.

In a display cabinet on the third floor of the MCG sits a vibrant pink ensemble worn by Robbie Williams. His show in front of a hundred thousand spectators was hailed as a success.

You might not like Robbie Williams. Maybe you feel he is the finest offering to music in history. Alternatively, you may hold a reasonable stance, admitting that some songs are excellent while others are terrible.

The central idea is that enjoyment can be delivered diversely. You like what you like. There is not a single method to create music or even five-day cricket.

The Unrivalled Depth of The Long Game

The traditional format boasts incomparable variety. One struggles to think of another sport where the playing is so reliant upon external factors.

The weather, the time of day, the ball – the factors are countless. Above all is the pitch.

If Test cricket is art, the pitch is the foundation on which the athletes paint their masterpiece.

A Test of Cubism: The Fourth Test

The Boxing Day fixture between Australia and England was Test cricket cubism, the great game broken apart and stuck back together in abstract form.

Let's be clear, this isn't a defence of the pitch which produced a victory and the another sub-three-day finish of the Ashes battle.

Leaving excessive grass on the surface, resulting in a cascade of wickets falling in less than two days, is not a fair contest between offense and defense.

A Varied History: The Essence of Test Cricket

But any idea this was a inferior show, one that should be qualified as not a proper Test, is incorrect.

The format is a varied portfolio, 2,615 parts and still growing. Sometimes, as witnessed recently, the cricket ball behaves unpredictably for the seamers. Sometimes, it spins sharply on a dry surface. Sometimes, the pitch is flat as a pancake, other times it spits like a cobra.

The close matches are particularly captivating because of the investment committed in other matches.

Adjustment: The Real Challenge

Certain variables are embraced more easily than others.

The contention in at the MCG was that the balance was tipped too far towards the attack. That the best players were unable from demonstrating their skill.

Test cricket is about problem solving – interpreting the situation and adapting appropriately. The top two individual contributions were made by acknowledged players. One side committed more errors than the other, and thus were defeated.

Unbridled Joy: For Those Who Waited

Try telling the fans who have experienced years of defeat that this wasn't compelling.

In a corner of the ground, thousands waved their flags and sang their songs, producing a carnival vibe in a bastion of Australian cricket.

There was belief as the attack surged, momentum when the top order fought back, and rapturous celebration when the result was achieved.

Extreme Ends: The Variety of Test Matches

The Melbourne has previous experience with pitch problems. Previously, a game there featured a pitch with the excitement of a pulled Christmas cracker.

That contest was a grind, with few wickets and interminable tedium. The two-day game and that drawn affair are diametrically opposed points of the range – both are not ideal, yet historical weight can be attached to both.

Four Tests into the current series, it is the quick finishes that will live longest in the memory.

"It's not the end of Test cricket at all," commented a past champion. "The people who have been fortunate to see these 48 hours have been treated to some real entertainment. Different entertainment."

Signs of Progress: Looking Ahead

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

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

Emerging talents stepped up with key contributions. These are small positives, hardly enough to secure long-term futures, but something to use as a platform.

At the very least, this triumph is added to other memorable performances in similar circumstances.

As the crowd slipped away into a stunning sunset, the team assembled on the outfield to begin their own enjoyment.

Enjoy the drink, men. It's well deserved.