The joy of sport
What is it about sports that thrills us and captures our imagination. Just watched the Bills lose their make or break game and it got me thinking about what sports, especially team sports has come to mean to us. And it struck me that beyond a certain point results have little meaning. Its the manner in which the game is played, the response of each player, the character displayed that holds more fascination. Sports is so much more than just a game. You have more display of emotion than on a emotion packed movie. And yes its real and not some character playing out a scriptwriter's imagination.
I think the most telling comment was made by someone who said that sports doesnt build character, it reveals it. Something that will strike anyone following a sport is what I shall call for want of a better word "philosophy". The underlying philosophy is perhaps the same across many sports. Its fascinating to watch so many teams battle the demons in their minds more than their opponents. Its perhaps what happened to the Bills today as well. They should have been playing with the belief that losing was not an option. They shouldnt have been looking to compete but dominate. They needed to let the opponents know that the price of victory was high. Instead they came out with more emphasis on strategies and technical details than on volition. Sometimes you have to go out there, free the mind from any self imposed shackles and play with aggression. There should have been no holding back, no conservation of energy but the desire to give it all from the very outset. Sometimes you have to go for broke. Momentum and the ability to sustain it is everything in such games.
The best example of this is in cricket where there is always a passage of play in every game that changes the momentum of a game and is decisive in determining the outcome, be it an inspired spell of bowling, an exceptional catch or a particularly impressive batting display. Cut back to Trent Bridge in 1998 for the fourth test between South Africa and England for half an hour of the most intense and raw cricket that you could imagine between Atherton and Donald. Cut back to Headingley in 2002 when India were touring England and when Ganguly and Tendulkar after declining the offer of light clobbered 90 odd runs including 5 sixes and 9 boundaries in 9 overs in fading light and on a greenish pitch. There are other images that come to mind, a young Steve Waugh stand up to Walsh and Ambrose on a minefield of a pitch preferring to take blows on his body than give his wicket up. Its events like these and many more that make sports worth the time that we give it.
I think the most telling comment was made by someone who said that sports doesnt build character, it reveals it. Something that will strike anyone following a sport is what I shall call for want of a better word "philosophy". The underlying philosophy is perhaps the same across many sports. Its fascinating to watch so many teams battle the demons in their minds more than their opponents. Its perhaps what happened to the Bills today as well. They should have been playing with the belief that losing was not an option. They shouldnt have been looking to compete but dominate. They needed to let the opponents know that the price of victory was high. Instead they came out with more emphasis on strategies and technical details than on volition. Sometimes you have to go out there, free the mind from any self imposed shackles and play with aggression. There should have been no holding back, no conservation of energy but the desire to give it all from the very outset. Sometimes you have to go for broke. Momentum and the ability to sustain it is everything in such games.
The best example of this is in cricket where there is always a passage of play in every game that changes the momentum of a game and is decisive in determining the outcome, be it an inspired spell of bowling, an exceptional catch or a particularly impressive batting display. Cut back to Trent Bridge in 1998 for the fourth test between South Africa and England for half an hour of the most intense and raw cricket that you could imagine between Atherton and Donald. Cut back to Headingley in 2002 when India were touring England and when Ganguly and Tendulkar after declining the offer of light clobbered 90 odd runs including 5 sixes and 9 boundaries in 9 overs in fading light and on a greenish pitch. There are other images that come to mind, a young Steve Waugh stand up to Walsh and Ambrose on a minefield of a pitch preferring to take blows on his body than give his wicket up. Its events like these and many more that make sports worth the time that we give it.
1 Comments:
Nicely written...couldnt agree more on the "joy of sport"...cos ultimately winning or losing doesnt matter...all that matters is giving the best shot!!
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