Cricket's just about England's best known invention. It used to be a sport for "proper gentlemen" - many of whom were, at the beginning, probably friends.
But then the rot set in. The various teams became more competitive, and "non-gent" professionals became common and, I assume, the general level of friendliness started to droop.
Subsequent arrival of teams from the colonies rapidly made the contests a matter of national pride, and what was weekend exercise for the "flanneled fools" became serious, high revenue business. Almost everywhere through the remnants of the old Empire, television, newspapers, and radio keep millions of fans up to date with the latest scores and scandals. Here in Oz this last week it looked like we'd sever diplomatic relations with India, before an evidently badly informed judge reached a barely satisfactory conclusion.
The fact is that "big" sport, these days, means big money, and winning's what really counts.
We want our cricketers to be gentlemen and winners, but- if they aren't too good at the gentle stuff then they'll still be OK just as long as they're winners!
Friends in big sport? - You must be kidding!
NB Apologies to purists for my potted cricket history.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment