So, the Windies came out triumphant in the 2nd Test. This win ensured the series ending up being squared 1-1. However, the series result is not the major talking point. No, the talking point of the series is the win itself. This was their first victory against Australia in Australia for 24 years. This spanned 17 matches and 6 tours. What made it more special was the presence of Brian Lara - a Windies' legend who was part of the team that last beat the Aussies in 1997. Shamar Joseph was the man of the match by taking 7-68. This was made even more impressive when considering he bowled with a toe injury.
Now, to anyone who follows cricket, they will understand the rollercoaster of emotions that accompanied the Windies' team members. The feeling could be described as a once in a lifetime for them. I was shocked and amazed by the result. I believed that the writing was on the wall when I saw the total and Australia reaching 100 runs with the loss of only 2 wickets. Regardless of whatever country you come from, it should be treasured as to what the Windies achieved. Based on various reports, it looks like I'm on the money as Sachin Tendulkar, AB De Villiers, Ian Bishop and Michael Vaughn all congratulated the team. Even a past Aussie in Tom Moody congratulated them.
Even in loss, Aussie captain, Pat Cummins, paid tribute to the team, "They outplayed us, they played brilliantly." If this teaches us anything, it's that we should accept defeat in a humble manner - whether it was a shock or not. We can't expect to win every match. When the time comes and we lose, we should acknowledge credit where it's due. Not doing so, signifies to me that the players are sore losers and can't accept it.
This brings me to the heart of this post. Former captain Tim Paine criticised fellow Australian players, such as Adam Gilchrist, for celebrating the result. He claimed that it was hard for him to accept the praise that the team were given. He stated that the Australian team should reflect on the poor performance and result. He acknowledged the fanfare that went with the result.
Similarly, Ian Healy was against the comments that Pat Cummins made. Healy was under the impression that both didn't perform well. He claims that the Windies only played well on the final day. He also claimed that Australia allowed them to get into the situation that they found themselves in.
However, what Healy probably didn't see was that Cummins identified that some of the batters didn't bat at their full potential and some might have been disappointed with their manner of dismissal. This just proves that some people are ignorant about the aftermath of the situation.
What these two comments from former players mean to me is that they couldn't handle the full grasp of the result. They were being so selfish and only took their own patriotic duties into account. If you, the reader, don't mind me saying this, self interest is for losers. There's a reason why self interest is believed to be one of 9 evil traits in humans (The D Factor)*. They only care about themselves and their associates and don't take into account the "outside" world.
In all, no matter what happens, people should look at things in life from an objective viewpoint and not from a subjective one. Doing the latter means you lose perspective on reality and the outside world. You should be opened minded and not a closed one.
*The D [dark] Factor is a test for evil traits.