It's great to be back. Five days, bad light, warm beer, snoozing pensioners, some fireworks, plenty of frustration, bit of attrition, loads of rain. And it'll probably end in a draw.

And I wouldn't have it any other way.

After the hype and fanfare of the IPL, Test cricket is back to show what real cricket's all about.

There's nothing particularly wrong with the IPL or other one-day cricket. It's entertaining enough. Better than, say, golf.

But it's just not the same. It doesn't draw you in. It doesn't capture the imagination. I've never met anyone who passionately loves one-dayers. I've met plenty who prefer Test cricket to their wives and children.

One-day cricket is CSI; Test cricket is The Wire.

CSI's well-made, slickly produced and entertaining. There are some fine performances and the occasional gripping yarn, but their ultimately formulaic, by the book and often predictable.

Each story is wrapped up neatly within the allotted time, and by the following week no-one much cares about what went before.

But The Wire is different. It's a sprawling multi-layered tale that unfolds over a period of time that baffles non-believers, the characters develop and preconceptions are shattered, and it's often quite difficult to watch.

Nothing is handed to the viewer; you're not spoonfed. The occasional gunfight or drug bust serves only to punctuate the lengthy periods of complex but necessary plot development.

Indeed, the lengthy spells of relative inactivity make the flashpoints that much more thrilling and meaningful when they do arrive.

The lines between good or bad, or success and failure are blurred. The stand-out performances are superb. It'll never have widespread appeal, and couldn't exist on its own without the likes of CSI to appeal to the masses and fill the coffers, but its followers know it's the finest show around.

But, of course, any analogy will crack if you push it hard enough: the best performers on The Wire are English.