"I fixate on a New Zealand fielder, a guy named Bond. Black shirt, black pants, black hat, black wraparound shades. He's dressed to fight high-tech vampires. Standing in the equivalent of deep left field, he's basically removed from the action; during the 20 minutes I watch him, not a single ball comes his way.
Still, he fidgets. Swings his arms. Claps his hands. Crouches on every bowled ball, staring intently at the batter, alert as a fire alarm. Ready to move. And here, I realize, is the sport in a nutshell: a game of perpetual focus, not wham-bam fireworks, a game akin to a candle in an empty wine bottle, perfectly attuned to slow-burn obsession."
Excerpt from "Murder by Cricket" by ESPN's Patrick Hruby. The article was written to cover the death of Bob Woolmer, during the 2007 World Cup in West Indies. Funny thing is, I was at this game (where the above action was described from), expecting India to be playing NZ but alas, it wasn't to be!
i like this quote a lot, and i think it also describes how YOU feel about cricket pretty well.
ReplyDeletei think this is why it would be hard for cricket to really catch on in america without a lot of adaptations. not because americans aren't smart enough but because they aren't patient enough.
Although in football 20 seconds equals like 40 minutes, so who knows, hey-oh! Pyew pyew pyew!