Monday 23 January 2012

Breaking rackets

A great article was sent to me by a friend on Friday:

Of Baghdatis, the pain of losing, triumphalism and destruction

You need to watch this first, if you haven't already. In case you weren't aware of what happened last week in the 2nd round of the Australian Open, fellow Cypriot and mildly crazy person Marcos Baghdatis broke four tennis rackets in less than a minute, in a manic frenzy of anger venting.

What I would disagree with is that Binoo K John, the writer of the article above, overlooks another key point - that it's not just about winning and not losing. It's about not knowing what is going wrong, not knowing how to fix it, not wanting to take the blame and putting the blame elsewhere. Being lost in a particular moment where resignation is not yet an option but it can very soon be the only possibility.

Resignation, according to British philosopher Bertrand Russell, is not to admit defeat, but to recognise that your personal efforts can have no impact on certain events whose development and conclusion lie beyond your control and powers. No matter how much he has been criticized for this, it has been overlooked that he finishes everything off with a smile. After escaping the Bacchic frame of mind that he temporarily entered, Marcos returned to his normal disposition which is what made him one of the most likeable tennis personalities of recent years. He wins the next set but goes on to lose the match. He does what is within his powers, and then he resigns.

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