E-Paper
Being skipper can be painful, literally
In the World Cup game against Namibia, on his way to a big hundred, Sourav went for a sweep but the ball caught the edge of the bat and smashed into his face. The 12th man rushed into the ground to attend to the minor gash but the captain, keen on scoring more runs, waved him away.
In the World Cup game against Namibia, on his way to a big hundred, Sourav went for a sweep but the ball caught the edge of the bat and smashed into his face.
The 12th man rushed into the ground to attend to the minor gash but the captain, keen on scoring more runs, waved him away.
During the break between innings a doctor arrived, he thought the injury wasn’t major but felt an injection was needed. But Sourav shot the proposal down by announcing he was absolutely fine, there was no pain, no discomfort . Why fuss over something trivial? he asked and added. I can’t stand the sight of a needle!
One can imagine Sourav’s agony as he copes with two surgeries which not only forced him out of action ( after making a Test hundred ) but left him a wound on his left thigh that is 5 cms in length, breadth and depth. The pain is such Sourav requires general anaesthesia each time it is dressed.
We understand sportspersons are supermen with strong bodies and strong minds. These tigers, driven by passion, disregard pain and think nothing of minor scrapes and aches.
In the past warriors consumed ganja and charas to fortify themselves; nowadays, sportspersons, who too are warriors in a sense, handle pressure somewhat differently.
Some slimily (and illegally) pop pills to retard stress, reduce weight, enhance endurance and calm nerves. Others work on their bodies (in the gym) and minds (with the psychologist and coach) for performing at peak levels.
Every sportsman realises it is essential to cope with pain and pressure. That is why Sachin carries on despite a dodgy back/bad toe/hamstring strain/repeated cramps and a hand injury.
For the same reason, Harbhajan keeps bowling and Srinath considers making another tour, ignoring shoulder trouble and repeated knee surgeries. This summer in Durham Srinath’s knee was so bad he could barely stay on his feet.
Nothing illustrates the resilience of contemporary cricketers better than Nehra. His ankle had to be carefully plastered before every World Cup game but getting ready was easy, the problem was to remove the tape after play.
Nehra screamed with pain when these were yanked off brutally - the only sympathy he got was Leipus saying ‘sorry mate but there is nothing I can do!’
There are many examples of players playing ignoring pain, pushing themselves, abusing their bodies. But, whatever the level of determination and grit, most players are defeated by the monotony of their daily routine, grounded by the grind itself.
Says Sourav: Nobody complains that he is tired of cricket. We can play every day but the non-stop travel and training kills us.
Add to this the bother of absorbing pressure. Players are forever under scrutiny and the extent to which this impacts cricket is reflected by a chance remark made by the Indian captain.
When someone complimented him on his slim, fit look, Sourav replied: This is thanks to pressure, not just because of training or the physio. Captaining India is one of the most difficult jobs - I have more grey hair at 31 than people who are 45!
