International cricket is played around the year these days. The world cup has just ended and the month of May will have a whole heap of series’ going on. Sri Lanka takes on Pakistan, India would be trying to avenge their defeat against Bangladesh and the West Indies would be playing England. The list of fixtures keeps going on. The challenge of having a fully fit squad has never been more and hence the additional fitness trainer / physiotherapist that every team has these days. Brian Lara and Glenn Mcgrath just retired from international cricket and were among a select few that managed to play international cricket past their 35th birthday. Although, Tendulkar and Jayasuriya have still not retired, their days are numbered. The pressure of performing continuously and keeping yourself fit takes a toll and it seems that only the best of the best can even last this long.
The cricket loving Asian sub continent public’s expectations have never been higher. Hyped by the media, they expect their favourite players to perform in every match and for their team to win every game. This is impossible, although some may argue that the Australian team has managed this. This is not so, their Ashes loss in 2005, and the 3-0 drubbing against the New Zealanders just prior to the world cup proved that even the best can falter.
Every time a batsman walks in to bat, no matter if he’s Ponting, Dravid or Sangakkara he is bound to be under some kind of pressure. Although ponting might be coming in when the score is 200 for1 while Sangakkara might come in when the score is 10 for 1. The new batsman needs to adjust to the situation, get a measure of the pitch, if it’s a one day international gauge how the wicket’s playing and make a decision on what would be a good score on that wicket. There could be cloud cover and the ball could start to move about. It makes the batsman’s life harder if he’s facing Murali and Malinga or maybe even Bond and Vettori. For a bowler the situation could be just as hard.
They are professionals. But the pressure on them physically and mentally is so gruelling. The next time you watch a match and a new batsman walks in, look for signs of nervousness – you’d see very little, that’s cause they are “Professionals” but all of them feel it. It only makes it worst when there is so much criticism and analysis every time they fail.
The pressure on the physic is even more. Major injuries or minor injuries that turn into serious ones by continuously playing even cause certain players to turn to steroids to keep fit.
It’s unfair for the public to expect these players to be on top of their game day in day out. They are only human and will have a bad day. Burning effigies one day and a hero’s welcome another day is not the way to go about it. Sympathise when they fail and celebrate when they succeed.
The cricketers would love to tell you this but they cannot – “Just enjoy the cricket we play and ease off the pressure on us”. They deserve that; they give it all every time they represent their country's. No player wants to be out first ball or be hit for a six.
The cricket loving Asian sub continent public’s expectations have never been higher. Hyped by the media, they expect their favourite players to perform in every match and for their team to win every game. This is impossible, although some may argue that the Australian team has managed this. This is not so, their Ashes loss in 2005, and the 3-0 drubbing against the New Zealanders just prior to the world cup proved that even the best can falter.
Every time a batsman walks in to bat, no matter if he’s Ponting, Dravid or Sangakkara he is bound to be under some kind of pressure. Although ponting might be coming in when the score is 200 for1 while Sangakkara might come in when the score is 10 for 1. The new batsman needs to adjust to the situation, get a measure of the pitch, if it’s a one day international gauge how the wicket’s playing and make a decision on what would be a good score on that wicket. There could be cloud cover and the ball could start to move about. It makes the batsman’s life harder if he’s facing Murali and Malinga or maybe even Bond and Vettori. For a bowler the situation could be just as hard.
They are professionals. But the pressure on them physically and mentally is so gruelling. The next time you watch a match and a new batsman walks in, look for signs of nervousness – you’d see very little, that’s cause they are “Professionals” but all of them feel it. It only makes it worst when there is so much criticism and analysis every time they fail.
The pressure on the physic is even more. Major injuries or minor injuries that turn into serious ones by continuously playing even cause certain players to turn to steroids to keep fit.
It’s unfair for the public to expect these players to be on top of their game day in day out. They are only human and will have a bad day. Burning effigies one day and a hero’s welcome another day is not the way to go about it. Sympathise when they fail and celebrate when they succeed.
The cricketers would love to tell you this but they cannot – “Just enjoy the cricket we play and ease off the pressure on us”. They deserve that; they give it all every time they represent their country's. No player wants to be out first ball or be hit for a six.
1 comment:
Good for people to know.
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