As an Indian, how often have you witnessed your country's national team on the verge of victory only to lose in the dying moments? The number of sporting heartbreaks that we Indians have experienced, particularly in the last decade, is heartbreaking and something to consider.
The Indian Men's Hockey team experienced something similar against the Kiwis in their Hockey World Cup crossover match last week. The Indian team led 3-1 at the end of the third quarter before giving up two more goals to finish regulation time with a 3-3 score. In the end, New Zealand won the penalty shootout and advanced to the Quarter-Finals.
There are lots of instances like these across many sports we play. Often, our National Men's football would lead the game narrowly like 1-0 or something, and then concede a goal in the dying minutes. Same with the cricket team, both men and women. There's a reason we have not won many ICC trophies after performing like a top team. THE MISSING KILLER INSTINCT.
But where do you think all this originates from?
In my opinion, this is something we might blame on the Indian cultural upbringing, and not just Indians but also most of the Asian continent have that trait of being super kind to everyone. That is not a bad thing, but somehow it shows in our gameplay in any sport. A team can be super kind and friendly yet still kill off the game and not give the opponent any chance of a comeback, providing no breathing space. To some extent, the New Zealand cricket team is all super nice and friendly, but they do have the ability to finish off; yes, they choke at crucial times, but not all that frequently.
Consider Japan's 2018 World Cup Round of 16 game against Belgium, which Japan led for the majority of the game before conceding three goals and losing.
You don't see teams like Australia and England in cricket fumbling when they are in control of the game. A very good reason can be that they have historically been superior to other nations, so it's in the blood. It's a very bland reason, but it somewhat stands. The history of a country plays a major part in shaping mentality when they come out in the field. But the Indian Cricket team has bullied both Australia and England on their home turf and that is the very correct state of mind to get on the field to play with, semi-aggressively confident.
It is not like the teams are not in the right mental space but getting complacent when winning is like giving an easy way back to the opponent. Hence it is also important to have a sports psychologist in a team.
The Art of Finishing Off a Game is extremely subjective, as all art forms are, but when you witness it while watching sports, you'll realise how crucial it is for a team. When a team is about to fumble, you can see in their gameplay that they lack the spirit of a predator and the umph to finish the game.
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ReplyDeleteCall me finisher the way I always finish first 🥇
ReplyDeleteKhatam Tata Bye bye
ReplyDeleteFinest finishing in the game🇮🇳
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