If ever you’ve felt like a loser in the last two years or so, here’s an inspiring story of how you can turn this around, by learning from mistakes, focused effort under pressure… and of course, the art of teamwork with an ability to switch the pace up, when needed.
Jesse Ryder (83) applied himself to get his first half century of the tournament. Cramp meant he sat out the entire South African innings, replaced by How. Ryder’s partnership with Ross Taylor (43) gave the New Zealand innings substance, even if neither exhibited much swashbuckling. Ryder’s team The Black Caps lost 11 times running last year in one day tournaments. This year, the qualify to be one of four of the best cricket sports teams in the world.
Teamwork. Focus. Resistance. Inspiration going a long way. Marauding fielding skils were all buzz words of the team’s turn around.
Ryder’s team’s perspiration came earlier in the week. They trained relentlessly in the Dhaka heat on Wednesday and Thursday after a Monday fitness session had melted them in the furnace of Mumbai.
“About over nine or 11 the ball started [to reverse],” Jesse’s team mate Jacob Oram said. “If we were playing in New Zealand, people would think you had sandpaper out there. But considering the block and the nature of the wicket, it’s a skill you need and [bowling coach] Allan Donald has to take a lot of credit.”
Alright – it’s good to see New Zealand doing well on a global cricketing stage. It’s a fun sport. Meekness is about crawling through disappointments and past mistakes to deliver on the cricket pitch on the day. This is what these boys do. Being humble heroes is their business.
[Jesse Ryder is photographed here in India by Getty Images]
~Posted by Horiwood.Com, Hollywood California USA. 3.26.11~