Living in lands of threat
Dear Reader,
I apologise for my silence over the last handful of days, and days in which the cricket world has vibrated. I want to write digital-reams about each of them – Jacob Oram intimating that he might give up tests; Grant Elliott defying my, and everybody else’s, judgment that he wasn’t good enough; England collapsing for 51; Allen Stanford preparing to pull out of cricket as a sport to exploit; Brendon McCullum, with more bruise than tattoo on his right shoulder; Michael Clarke proving that while he is Australia’s appointed dauphin, he might be a less prudent beat than the guy he rumbled with, Simon Katich; the referral system unravelling and ridiculed; Zimbabwe on the verge of an unwelcome return to test cricket; the IPL auctions of choice cuts of cricketing meat; the Rosebowl series; going 2-0 up over Australia on Waitangi Day; the sense of inevitability when Australia drew level yesterday; Craig Cumming – the new Matthew Sinclair; Kyle Mills way too high at number 6; and, errr Andy Bichel’s retirement.
I wanted to write about all these things, and I will write about all these things, except Bichel (good back-up player, stopped us winning the World Cup in 2003, wish we had more like him playing for us). But every time in the last couple of days that I have sat down to pen some flippant piece, tilling the fallow fields of my wit for some funny phrase, or dropping unsustainable opinions, or pulling out pop culture references like business cards at a cocktail party, one thing rushes at me and stops me in my tracks.
The bushfires.
What has occurred over there is so horrific that I can’t uncork my writing until I deal with it.
Cricket has not been very touched by natural disaster even though, with the exception of benign, peaceful England, we all live in lands of threat – New Zealand and Pakistan with their earthquakes, West Indies with hurricanes, Africa with drought, famine and disease, ditto India, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka and add floods. There have also been individual losses – cricketers have succumbed to enteric fever, or Spanish flu, or Aids and other pandemics; Murali lost relatives in the 2004 tsunami; and of course our own Bob Blair lost his fiancée Nerissa Love in the Tangiwai lahar. We have lost a test ground to a hurricane (Grenada), one to a flood (Lucknow), one to a tsunami (Galle) but we’ve gained one from an earthquake – 1856 in Wellington, which raised the proposed shipping basin near the Mt Cook barracks and gave us the Basin Reserve.
Then there are bushfires in Australia. In 1884, England were playing at Adelaide and the players had to lie on the ground as great billows of eucalyptus smoke crossed the ground. And of course there was the fatal Ash Wednesday in 1983 – and the bushfire charity match that followed to raise funds.
But no bushfire has quite been on the scale of what occurred on Saturday. I am still astounded at the loss of life. I guess part of the impact is that it occurred near Melbourne, a city I love. And part is that these are our near neighbours who are suffering: Australians, who, however much we might will their sports teams to unravel and however much we might tease them as being crass and coarse, are the nearest we have to comrades on this earth. This is only enhanced by the fact that we are playing against Australia right now, and that the game at the MCG on February 6 was the last sports event some of those people who perished would have viewed.
My sympathies to all.
Picture: Fairfax
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Nice piece Hamish.
sad state of affairs when the nz sporting public is subjected to a jobs for the boys mentality from the top down,Jock Hobbs failed !!!..Martin Snedden failed !!!for gods sake stop sucking on the sporting tit and get someone in who knows what theyre doing.How much longer does it take to be competitive,vettori should be sacked for bowling first in sydney what a monumental blunder,thanks for once again putting us on the backfoot.Doesnt anyone ever think about the game anymore.Between the top order the coach and Vettori no one worked it out.Vettori give me your cellphone number Ill text ya from the couch next time you win the toss.
Thanks Hamish, for I too have been similarly grief-afflicted by this horrific event. My love of the great game has not been quite there this week: my usual cricketing joie de vivre strangely absent. Australians are our neighbours, and bloody good ones they are too.
Well said Hamish; Australia are our closest neighbours, and not just geographically.
Well said....
Very well said Hamish...I am an Australian and jokes and friendly rivalry aside, there is a real affection between the two countries and we are close neighbors. I live in Victoria and the bushfires have hit us all very hard. We all appreciate the support being provided by the New Zealanders right now.
Guptill blasts Black Caps to victory in first T20
Brothel scares and stresses neighbourhood
Quake felt across lower North Island
Hurricanes weather elements to beat Chiefs
'Naughty' toilet traps terrified toddler
Million-dollar view, shame about the house
Trap for burglars catches policeman
Police car pig painter mystery unsolved
Protest rally to seek council elections
O'Connor attacks Smith's stance
City councillor in starring role
Parents not told when drunk pupils sent home
Puts its all into perspectie really...its only a game