For me, Test cricket will always be the pinnacle. For me, Test cricket will always be the pinnacle. Test cricket – for me – will always be the pinnacle. The more you say it, the truer it becomes. That’s how it works. Try it for yourself. For me, Test cricket will always be the pinnacle. For me, Windows XP will always be the operating system of choice. For me, the territorial status of Ukraine will always be “uninvaded”. For me, the mullet will always be in fashion.
This is a safe space, after all: a dwindling and a besieged space, but a safe space all the same. Here you can whisper your wishes into the conch, and receive only likes, warming affirmations and sage nods in return. Reality need never impinge on your immaculate vision. You will never be challenged or asked to show your working, or be made to explain exactly how you’re going to maintain the primacy of a protracted and commercially stunted sporting format in the jaws of a ravenous and lucrative alternative. If pushed on the detail, you can simply declare that “the game’s administrators must do more”, and again nobody will ever seriously disagree with you.
