'Did It Not Captivate?' The Reason a 48-Hour Test Remained Every Bit a Proper Cricket Test.

Within a display cabinet on the third floor of the MCG is housed a electric pink ensemble donned by the entertainer. The concert in front of a massive crowd of spectators was considered a success.

Perhaps you don't appreciate Robbie Williams. Maybe you feel he is the finest offering to music in history. You might take a balanced view, conceding that some songs are fantastic while others are terrible.

The central idea is that entertainment can manifest in countless ways. Preferences differ. There is not a single method to craft art or even five-day cricket.

The Unrivalled Depth of Test Cricket

The traditional format boasts unrivalled depth. One struggles to think of another sport where the outcome is so dependent on conditions.

The weather, the session, the cricket ball – the list is endless. Crucially is the playing surface.

If Test cricket is an artistic pursuit, the strip is the blank slate on which the cricketers paint their masterpiece.

A Test of Cubism: The Fourth Test

The fourth Ashes Test between the two sides was Test cricket cubism, the established format broken apart and reconstructed in abstract form.

Let's be clear, this isn't a endorsement of the pitch which yielded a victory and the another sub-three-day finish of the contest.

Allowing a thick layer on the surface, leading to numerous dismissals being taken in less than six sessions, is not a balanced duel between bat and ball.

A Diverse Legacy: The Nature of Test Cricket

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

The format is a rich tapestry, a long history and still growing. At times, as witnessed recently, the ball moves excessively for the fast men. Sometimes, it grips and turns on a dry surface. At other venues, the pitch is flat as a pancake, other times it bounces unevenly.

The close matches are particularly captivating owing to the patience committed elsewhere.

Adjustment: The Real Challenge

Some factors are accepted more easily than others.

The contention in during the match was that the contest was skewed excessively towards the bowlers. That the top batters were prevented from demonstrating their skill.

Test cricket is about finding solutions – reading the wicket and adjusting accordingly. The best individual innings were made by world-class players. One team committed more errors than the other, and thus were defeated.

Unbridled Joy: The Fan Perspective

Try telling the supporters who have endured a long drought that this lacked spectacle.

In a corner of the stadium, countless fans made noise and chanted, producing a festive mood in a bastion of national pride.

There was belief as the attack dominated, advantage when the top order scored quickly, and rapturous celebration when the result was confirmed.

Polar Opposites: The Range of Test Matches

The Melbourne has form with pitch problems. In the past, a game there featured a wicket with all the life of a pulled Christmas cracker.

That match was a grind, with limited drama and interminable tedium. This recent match and that drawn affair are diametrically opposed points of the spectrum – one is not more perfect, yet historical weight can be found in them.

Four Tests into the ongoing battle, it is the quick finishes that will remain iconic in the history books.

"Far from being the demise of the long game at all," observed a veteran. "Spectators who have been lucky enough to see these short time have been given some fantastic sport. An unusual spectacle."

Baby Steps: Looking Ahead

In the build-up to this Test, the skipper spoke like a man carrying the weight of the world on his back.

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

Emerging talents stepped up with vital performances. These are incremental gains, hardly enough to secure long-term success, but a foundation to build on.

At the very least, this MCG win joins other notable performances in similar circumstances.

As the supporters departed into a glorious Melbourne evening, the team congregated on the turf to start their own enjoyment.

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