‘owzat
I appreciate that feeling a bit down, a tad melancholic, is not depression. Honestly. I accept that depression is a debilitating illness that needs expert treatment. I do. I concede that depression is a serious medical condition. I really do. And one part of me does feel sorry for Jonathan Trott. It does. But it’s only a small part. The other bit, a much bigger bit, perhaps the uncaring chauvinistic northerner in me, feels like telling him to ‘man-up’ and pull himself together. Which probably doesn’t help the poor guy but there it is. It’s the bit in me that also got terribly wound up last year when hearing again, and again, and again, of all the Olympians’ hardships and sacrifices. Getting up at 6.00am six days a week to go to work in Poundland is a hardship. Never being able to spend time with your kids due to your ever-changing shift-pattern is sacrifice. Not, having to take a nap in the afternoon due to your morning’s exertions. Or having to avoid fast-food to ensure a good diet with high energy levels. Or feeling there’s better training facilities to be had in the Bahamas. These are choices and constitute neither hardship nor sacrifice.
As we have subsequently found out, Jonathan Trott is not the first cricketer, English or otherwise, to pull out of a tour in such a way, but the way the press have reacted you’d be forgiven for thinking he was. The hoo-ha has primarily centred upon cricket as a cauldron of emotion, a bear-pit of sledging and quite unlike any other sport. In reality, the proportion of professional cricketers who suffer from mental & physical health problems is approximately 5%. Tah-da, in other words the same as the rest of us.
Having said that, cricket is certainly an unforgiving sport, especially from a batsman’s perspective as once you’re out, you’re out. There’s no second chance and no going back. Only back to the pavilion. The baller can potentially make amends for a mistake with his next delivery. Ditto the wicketkeeper and other fielders. As a batsman you can spend hours, perhaps even days, preparing for an innings, only for it to be over in just one ball, a blink of an eye. But isn’t that the whole nature of the sport – it’s called a game of cricket for good reason, it’s a game and you win some, you lose some? Do I see it as being any more stressful or confrontational than other gladiatorial one-to-one sports (as it does surely come down to bat vs ball) such as squash or tennis or (God forbid!) snooker, darts, or even a striker vs a keeper in all manner of team sports. No, not really. Man-up Jonathan, it’s your job so get on with it. You pays your money, you takes your choice.
