In the age of social media, of instant gratification, immediate satisfaction and split-second reaction, even cricket’s shrunken Twenty20 version can sometimes seem cumbersome and unwieldy.

While the players swing the bat with abandon in the summer hit the Big Bash, the commentators, the off-field entertainment and the stadium PA system all contrive to keep the audience interested during what might only be the briefest lulls between boundaries and towering sixes.

The idea is for the action to be continuous – whether it’s in the middle or on the other side of the advertising hoardings. Anything to keep restless eyes from wandering.

And yet part of this summer’s cricket fare, the main meal before the dessert that was the Big Bash in the evening, was another Ashes series.

Over a month-and-a-half, Australians were again invited to lose themselves in a series of Test matches – the longer, longer form of the game, in which you might play for days without even deciding who was the victor.

Beginning in Brisbane and ending in Sydney, the Ashes offered drama, twists, surprises and sudden turnarounds – but only for those willing to invest the time and the interest.

Five days of exertion ended in a draw in Melbourne. But almost five days of toil in Adelaide ended in a 120-run victory for Australia late on the last day that was, at various times, far from assured. 

As is customary in Test matches, character was challenged and strengths and flaws were teased out and tested over long periods at the crease and in the field.

For a world of Snapchat, Instagram, movies on demand and Twitter, Test cricket – whether the Ashes or not – should have been dead, buried and cremated years ago.

And yet it lives on.

Perhaps it shows that Australians will watch anything – even a team of men in white standing out in the field for eight hours – as long it involves a ball and a sense of competition.

Or perhaps it shows that even in the hyperactive world of 2018, when everything is available now and waiting is unacceptable, there is still an appetite for something that rewards patience and concentration.

Sometimes good things, even in sport, come to those who wait.