Praying for luck

This article may be a bit controversial, but I will provide you with explanations.

I always smile when I come upon pictures of team Sri Lanka getting blessed before they leave for tour. I always smile when I see someone like Ishant with his right wrist covered in red thread or Sreesant wearing 20 wrist bands. I always smile when I hear people say “with God’s grace".

Now, you may wonder why I am taking away something that obviously gives comfort and (sometimes) confidence. I am not a heartless person trying to come up with reasons why India lost. I am attempting to explain why sub-continental teams blow hot and cold.

Brett Lee once said “the game of cricket is hard enough as it is, so why complicate it further". He was referring to superstitious beliefs. I am going to go one step further and blame the supernatural for not letting sub-continental cricketers train their hardest and perform their best.

When we believe in a supernatural being/thing it allows for a dimension that isn’t under your control and isn’t affected by our hard yards in the nets. It works as an excuse to paint bad performances. It works to shake off the disappointing efforts and not look for rational explanations for bad performances. Someone bowling short throughout the match (like Ashwin) can easily attribute his performance to not putting the correct shoe on first. Not to mention that having extra chains around your nick obstruct your view and irritate you. But taking these chains off is not really an option as the supernatural will quit helping you to find the edge or so it is believed.

Suppose that by chance you got a 5fer by having a particular handkerchief in your pocket, do you get rid of that handkerchief when you get hammered? Of course not. You’ll try finding another handkerchief to carry alongside the existing one for even more luck. Slowly, more and more handkerchiefs are being carried. The problem gets compounded. More and more of your practice time gets diverted to insure that you have all your handkerchiefs in your pocket. It will drive a man insane if one is lost.

Teams from the Sub-continent won’t be true champions until they realize that life is a numbers game. One must do things that help the odds .i.e. play with a straight bat, bowl good areas and must quit doing things that don’t .i.e. praying, wearing medallions. Fortune favors the brave they say, but it also favors the one who is willing to do the hard yards and take responsibility for one’s actions.