The Test | Test 2 | Match insights and learnings

Test match is not as boring as people say. It is one of the most important format of the game which tell us a lot about the game, the players and the team. Some good life lessons for me have come from the cricket matches. And some really good lessons came from the last test match.

The punch to the gut 

India’s 36-9 in the 7th session of the game was nothing less than a punch to the gut. It was disheartening for the fans to witness the same. The players looked taken aback on what was happening and the pressure was real. It was very unexpected and unfortunate that something like this happened. Indian cricket team once experienced a similar type of blow when they got all out for 42 under Ajit Wadekar’s captaincy in 1973-74 against England. It was after almost 46 years that India had experienced such a fall. The cricket fan base felt the pain along with the players. While some went out to express their disappointment on the social media, some showered the team with love and support. It was nothing less than a trend that started about how bad it was and why everyone should rest out and questions were raised on Virat’s captaincy and his choice to take a paternity leave. While questions were raised it made me think of how emotionally invested we all are in this game.

We felt the pain almost on the same line as the players. It felt like a personal loss. The next few days were full of questions and speculations on what is good and what could be better. A few days off for the team should have helped them too to get back. These few days are exactly what we need at times in life. Sometimes its good to stay away from the social media and take that off after a difficult day or a painful event. Some losses need time to be processed.

Getting up to fight 

In our daily lives, we all experience some punch to the gut moments where it feels like everything is out of control and things are difficult. Feels like a test you have failed and have to pass in order to reach a step closer to your goals. It isn’t an easy road to walk on as every step you take, there will be about 100 people telling you what you did wrong, what you should do instead and how you deserved what you got. We find all kinds of people in life. But, in midst of this, we should not forget to step back, analyze, think and prepare ourselves for the next one.

Where it seems like there is no use fighting for the goal, go harder at it. We have to get up to fight just like team India did. We might face some similar issues again in life, same environment, same people who may have hurt us, same workspace and when we do, we cannot stand on the weak side. We cannot just give them the control of our lives and let them guide our thoughts. We have to get up, fight and stand our ground. We may have to take a break from everything and clear our minds, express our sadness and then start getting up again and, this time stronger and wiser. We may have to make few changes which someone else may not agree with but if its needed, we have to take a tough call.

Resilience and self-belief 

When India had a bad session and a big collapse in the first test match, a lot of them from the cricket community and otherwise said it was impossible for the Indian team to stand up after the loss. They criticized the changes and went on to say that this loss is going to haunt them for a long time. The whole scenario of the media, people at a respectable positions, and fans pointing out how bad the team played and that its all over for them made me look beyond the game.

In our daily lives too, we have so many people, whom we look up to, our friends and relatives who tell us after a failure that we cannot probably make a career in our chosen field and we should do something else. Even if its a minor error, we are often reminded of how we cannot do one task properly. Sometimes it gets harsh and sometimes its better to block the noise.

When everyone starts talking about how you cannot do it after one bad attempt or a few failed trials at a particular thing, is exactly where your self belief comes into picture. When we hold on to what others tell us about us, it may not always be positive and we manifest that thinking ‘if they said it then it might be true’. It happens to the best in that respective field too. Instead, if we work on ourselves and are aware of our strengths and weaknesses, it is easier to block the noise and focus on what we do best.

Psychological resilience plays a huge role in all types of sports. Athletes need a higher level of psychological resilience as they have to overcome different stressors and  perform to their potential. Similarly, even if you are not an athlete, it is important to build a higher psychological resilience.

If it wasn’t for self belief in the players, it would have been a difficult game to play. They were confident, they believed in themselves and challenged the situation. The factor of positive self-belief is what helps us individuals to overcome challenges. This also helps us to see challenges in a different way and not succumb to it. In fact, we prove to ourselves that we are capable of facing the adversities and rising victorious from it. It builds confidence in self which in turn builds a sense of control in that particular situation.

The positive self belief and a better self confidence helps us in building psychological resilience (ability to cope up with situations). We saw the glimpse of all coming together in the team’s performance on all 4 days. While we talk about self belief, we should also understand the fact that we need to be realistic about our abilities and be as close to our real self as possible. If we end up overestimating our abilities and not be realistic about our potentials, it might lead to over-confidence and arrogance in an individual. If that happens, one may end up taking higher risks than a better calculated one.

Witnessing the performance by team India, the risk they took, the belief they had , the resilience and the character they displayed was well appreciated by all the fans and even the experts in the game. It was appreciated that they walked out of the ground with a smile and a win but little did we realize that they taught us something which we should never forget and I hope none of us ever will.

They are right when they say, cricket is life and life is cricket. It teaches you a lot, humbles you at times and makes you stronger and better as a human.

Urvi Shah (Author, Beyond the Matches)