<p>Individual sports events and team sports offer important life lessons - none perhaps more so than cricket. And that is because of the unique evolution of the game; thus, the Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) the guardian of the laws of the game, has in the preamble to the laws highlighted also the ‘Spirit of Cricket’. </p>.<p class="bodytext">Respect is critical to the spirit - respect for the captain, the teammates, opponents and the authority of the umpires. The spirit also emphasises the need to play hard and fair, have self-discipline, create a positive atmosphere by one’s conduct, congratulate the success even of the opposition and thank officials and the opposition irrespective of the result. Each of these dictums apply to life - as it does to every other game. Respect is important in all our dealings. Respect for the other, respect for time, respect for rules, for authority . It comes only when one is confident with oneself and to accepts differences in others. Respect is the lubricant of a well-organised, smooth functioning society or even the world order . Where there is no respect for each other or the laws, there is mayhem. Life becomes challenging with violence and brute force taking over leading to anarchy. </p>.Kurukkan, Malgova and memories.<p class="bodytext">Playing hard involves training and practice. It means perseverance and persistence. Playing fair means knowing that irrespective of the results of a match, it must be played within the rules-and if need be, beyond the rules, when one should do the right thing. Taking the analogy of cricket where when you know you have not caught the ball cleanly and despite the umpire giving the payer out , you call the player back. Self-discipline involves restraint. It teaches you to treat defeat and victory with equal calmness ; to let the defeat motivate you to do better the next time and the victory to not make you overconfident. </p>.<p class="bodytext">Each of these are virtues, which if adopted, will make one a better person. Mike Brearley, the philosopher-captain, says it best: “Examining the topic of the ‘spirit of cricket’ is one route into wider questions about honesty, transparency, and generosity; about deviousness, trickiness, and cheating.” The spirit of cricket has been described as that ‘will-o’-the-wisp located in an imaginary cloud castle three-four miles above the Lord’s cricket ground.’ But it is real and most certainly much more than that. It is life itself. Or to paraphrase CLR James what does anybody know of life who know not cricket.</p>
<p>Individual sports events and team sports offer important life lessons - none perhaps more so than cricket. And that is because of the unique evolution of the game; thus, the Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) the guardian of the laws of the game, has in the preamble to the laws highlighted also the ‘Spirit of Cricket’. </p>.<p class="bodytext">Respect is critical to the spirit - respect for the captain, the teammates, opponents and the authority of the umpires. The spirit also emphasises the need to play hard and fair, have self-discipline, create a positive atmosphere by one’s conduct, congratulate the success even of the opposition and thank officials and the opposition irrespective of the result. Each of these dictums apply to life - as it does to every other game. Respect is important in all our dealings. Respect for the other, respect for time, respect for rules, for authority . It comes only when one is confident with oneself and to accepts differences in others. Respect is the lubricant of a well-organised, smooth functioning society or even the world order . Where there is no respect for each other or the laws, there is mayhem. Life becomes challenging with violence and brute force taking over leading to anarchy. </p>.Kurukkan, Malgova and memories.<p class="bodytext">Playing hard involves training and practice. It means perseverance and persistence. Playing fair means knowing that irrespective of the results of a match, it must be played within the rules-and if need be, beyond the rules, when one should do the right thing. Taking the analogy of cricket where when you know you have not caught the ball cleanly and despite the umpire giving the payer out , you call the player back. Self-discipline involves restraint. It teaches you to treat defeat and victory with equal calmness ; to let the defeat motivate you to do better the next time and the victory to not make you overconfident. </p>.<p class="bodytext">Each of these are virtues, which if adopted, will make one a better person. Mike Brearley, the philosopher-captain, says it best: “Examining the topic of the ‘spirit of cricket’ is one route into wider questions about honesty, transparency, and generosity; about deviousness, trickiness, and cheating.” The spirit of cricket has been described as that ‘will-o’-the-wisp located in an imaginary cloud castle three-four miles above the Lord’s cricket ground.’ But it is real and most certainly much more than that. It is life itself. Or to paraphrase CLR James what does anybody know of life who know not cricket.</p>
