When strength becomes a weakness, what do you do?
A cricket anecdote that teaches a strategy lesson
‘The Nomads’ theatre production office would be buzzing with activity and visitors during Diwali, but this year there was a muted undertone to everything. Akash, the founder felt it deeply and had been sensing the dullness for quite some time now.
The pandemic and subsequent rise of OTT had taken away a good chunk of the regular theatre audience. The charm of watching a live play – be it monologue, drama or even a dance - had stifled under the worry of safety.
As the pandemic receded, the sachetization of content at cheaper price points made it harder to pull spectators. To top it, better pay and opportunities weaned away good actors and script writers – further weakening the pillars of theatre.
Akash and his crew were staunch theatre lovers and hustled to keep ‘The Nomads’ afloat. But their earlier strengths seemed to matter less in the new world. They needed a new direction but were lost.
Akash had to figure out a way to fire them up again. They had talent, creativity, grit and had a stellar track record in drama.
This Diwali party, Akash managed to get his old buddy from school - Rashesh to join in the celebrations. Rashesh was a sports psychologist who worked with the under 21 cricket teams. A nascent profession, sports psychology had picked up in the past few years as competitive intensity forced players into mental struggles. Rashesh had carved a niche for himself in cricket circles for being a smart psychologist and was held in huge esteem by marquee teams.
Akash asked Rashesh for a favor to talk a few moments with his team so as to breathe in a new lease of life into the fading heartbeats of ‘The Nomads’.
As conversations meandered that evening, Rashesh figured most of the team loved cricket. A couple of them even went into nostalgia of the Indian batting legend Sachin Tendulkar.
Sensing the right timing, he got everyone in a huddle and said – “I want to tell one of my favorite anecdotes about Sachin Tendulkar. We all remember him for his records, but my favorite innings may not be something many of you might even recollect. But it is a fascinating insight, especially for a psychologist like me, into his thinking patterns and determination.”
Piqued by his words, the team got hold of their food plates and glasses and spread around Rashesh.
The 2003-04 Australia India Cricket Test match series was a closely contested fight and remembered for many incidents by ardent cricket lovers.
Those were the days of formidable test players in both teams.
Aussies had swashbuckling batsmen in Hayden, Gilchrist, Ponting matched with stylish batters like Langer and Martyn. Fiery pacers like Brett Lee, Gillespie backed by the guile of spin of Stuart Macgill. Steve Waugh’s band of Aussies were a shrewd and gritty unit ruling the ICC test rankings comfortably for many years. Playing the Kangaroos in their backyard at that time would send chills down the spine of any cricketer.
India, on the other hand, had a classy batsmen quartet of Tendulkar, Ganguly, Laxman and Dravid topped with the cavalier Sehwag. In terms of bowling, they were sub-par in pace with Zaheer, Irfan and Agarkar but relied on their spin giant Kumble to turn the tables. Ganguly had breathed a new fighting spirit into Indian cricket and playing against them was no mean task.
The Indian unit was, however, a poor traveler and never won a Test series in Australia. To add to it, Sachin Tendulkar, arguably the best batter in the history of world cricket was struggling as well. He had not made a Test century since October 2002, more than a year ahead of the Australia Test series.
Scores of 0, 1, 37, 0 and 44 leading into the final Test meant Sachin was under tremendous pressure from the media. What was piquing interest of cricket observers was the manner of his dismissals. He lost his wicket driving at wide balls outside his off stump – which was like staple shot for him. His strength had somehow become his weakness.
Match
Series tied at 1-1. Final test - Day 1 Post Lunch session
Tendulkar walked in with the score on 128/2 with two quick wickets lost and Australia’s bowlers breathing fire.
There was not much anticipation given his recent form. Hope, though meagre, was not mere.
The Aussie pacers knew his weakness and targeted it with juicy deliveries swinging just outside the off.
Tendulkar was in a different zone that day - he simply did not play any cover drive at all. Simple yet not easy.
Imagine yourself as Tendulkar. You have played a decade of cricket, dominated bowlers all over the world and one of the best strokes in your arsenal is cover drive. You have scored tons of runs using that stroke on grounds across the globe. It is a stroke that is almost burned into your batting style.
In a corner after a string of poor performances, would you rely on a new stroke or your strengths? But your strength is now your weakness.
Tendulkar was in a state of meditation that day. The seamers enticed him continually with deliveries to unleash his favorite off-side drives off either front or back foot.
But the monk-minded Tendulkar refused to be tempted. Frustrated, the pacers dithered from their line of attack and bowled towards middle and off. This was the opportunity Tendulkar was waiting for. Using his iron-like wrists, he whipped the ball through the vacant onside.
Seeing through his strategy, Brett Lee and then other pacers corrected their angles to now aim at off stump, or just outside off, Tendulkar responded by unleashing his on drive down the ground just between the stumps and the motionless mid-on fielder.
Standing like a shore against the wave of pace attacks, he lasted 613 minutes spanning almost 3 days. Overall, he faced 413 balls in scoring an unbeaten 241 thus powering India to a formidable 700+ score.
Here is an interesting stat - He hit just 33 boundaries, not a single six in his unbeaten 241. Quite incredibly, not even one of the 33 boundaries was hit through the covers.
All 33 shots were of the highest mental order – overcoming the mind to avoid relying on strength and play in a new way.
Takeaways
I always talk about this episode in terms of the following 3 lessons for us -
Acceptance
Writing was on the wall about this apparent weakness in Sachin’s batting armor, but it seemed he was refusing to accept it. When he finally accepted it, half the battle was won for him.
He had overcome his ego which argued that the cover drive was his strength and he had to keep playing it till he scored a big one. Once he accepted that he was struggling, the internal battle was over. He was now fully ready for the battle on the pitch.
Arguably, when one is struggling, the best person to break out of that struggle is that person itself and it starts with acceptance.
Evolution
Sachin worked hard to identify how to face the fiery pacers without playing any cover drive. What shots should he avoid, what should he play. He practiced with specialist bowlers, he sought advice from coaches, fellow players and poured over videos of his dismissals.
Through this process he evolved his game and with steely determination executed his plan. In the modern era of T20, you often hear players and coaches backing their natural style. But Sachin’s innings reminds us that backing your strength is dangerous if it costs your team.
The takeaway is that adaptation instead of repetition is the key to change.
Perseverance
Today is a world of instant gratification.
We struggle to wait for even 10 seconds at traffic signals. But success, especially sustainable success takes perseverance and resilience.
That day, Sachin showed how deep his reserves of mental strength were. He was in monk-mode those 600 odd minutes as he emerged as an almost new version of himself.
Not only did he practice extreme self-control in avoiding the temptation of driving - one of his key strengths, but he pushed through to actually force the opposition to submit to his will.
Without perseverance, no evolution is complete.
Rashesh had lit a spark in ‘The Nomads’ that evening. When he checked back with Akash a few weeks later, he sensed a new excitement in his school friend’s voice. ‘The Nomads’ were toying with a few disruptive ideas to take theatre to a new level. The spark had lit the fires in their hearts and Rashesh knew it was only a matter of time before they explore new paths to move forward.
Very detailed and apt analysis of the inning! We can easily co relate this to our daily life.
Very nicely narrated