Displayed inside a showcase on the upper level of the Melbourne Cricket Ground sits a vibrant pink suit worn by the pop star. The show in front of 100,024 fans was seen as a major hit.
Perhaps you don't enjoy the performer. You might think he is the finest offering to music known to man. Or you could adopt a balanced view, conceding that some songs are fantastic while others are awful.
The central idea is that enjoyment can manifest in countless ways. You like what you like. There is not a single method to create music or even Test cricket.
The Unrivalled Depth of Test Cricket
The traditional format boasts unrivalled depth. It is hard to think of another sport where the playing is so reliant upon the environment.
The climate, the session, the red ball – the list is endless. Above all is the wicket.
If the format is an artistic pursuit, the wicket is the foundation on which the athletes paint their masterpiece.
A Broken-Down Battle: The Fourth Test
The Boxing Day fixture between the two sides was Test cricket cubism, the established format taken to pieces and reassembled in a bizarre shape.
It must be stated this is not a defence of the surface which resulted in a triumph and the another short match of the Ashes battle.
Allowing 10mm of grass on the pitch, causing numerous dismissals falling in less than a brief period, is not a balanced duel between batter and bowler.
A Diverse Legacy: The Core of Test Cricket
But any notion this was a diminished spectacle, one that should be marked with an asterisk as not a proper Test, is wide of the mark.
The long game is a varied portfolio, over two thousand matches and counting. On occasion, as witnessed recently, the cricket ball does all sorts for the seamers. Sometimes, it grips and turns on a spinning track. At other venues, the pitch is dead, other times it spits like a cobra.
The close matches are particularly captivating because of the investment devoted elsewhere.
Problem Solving: The Core Skill
Certain variables are embraced more easily than others.
The contention in during the match was that the contest was tipped too far towards the bowlers. That the best players were unable from playing their natural game.
Test cricket is about problem solving – assessing the conditions and adjusting effectively. The best individual contributions were made by acknowledged stars. One team committed more errors than the other, and thus ended up second best.
Unbridled Joy: The Supporters' View
Attempt to convince the devotees who have suffered years of defeat that this lacked spectacle.
In one section of the MCG, a sea of people waved their flags and chanted, fostering a party atmosphere in a bastion of national pride.
There was hope as the bowlers surged, advantage when players fought back, and pure joy when the victory was confirmed.
Polar Opposites: The Variety of Test Matches
The Melbourne has form with pitch problems. Eight years ago, a game there featured a wicket with the character of a a non-event.
That contest was a marathon, with limited drama and endless boredom. This recent match and that drawn affair are polar opposites of the spectrum – both are not ideal, yet historical weight can be attached to both.
At this stage into the current series, it is the shortest games that will be most remembered in the collective consciousness.
"It's not the death of the format at all," observed a veteran. "Spectators who have been lucky enough to see these two days have been treated to some genuine drama. An unusual spectacle."
Baby Steps: A Glimmer of Hope
In the preparation to this Test, the captain talked like a man carrying the weight of the world on his back.
The players delivered for him, restoring the joy to his persona.
New faces stepped up with vital performances. These are baby steps, hardly enough to guarantee long-term success, but something to develop from.
In the end, this MCG win joins other notable performances in similar circumstances.
As the supporters left into a beautiful night, the squad assembled on the turf to begin their own celebrations.
Enjoy the drink, men. It's well deserved.
