Page 80 of Game on, Love
“You do?”
“Yes. I’ve watched it before.”
“Oh,” She slumped in her seat. “Wait, why did you say yes to this then? We could’ve watched something else.”
“You wanted to watch this one,” I shrugged, and her expression softened.
Before she could say anything, the screen flashed with the title and stole her attention for a second before it was back on me.
“I’m okay,” I reassured her. “It’s actually one of my favourite ones he was in.”
She nodded, relaxing under my hold. I couldn’t help but smile as she turned back to the screen, and her expression turned into one of focus.
I’d watched this documentary only a handful of times before. It had the history of the sport, the cultural impact, thecurrent formats—domestic and international, behind the scenes, training, the game and the legends who shaped what it was today, and My family was a prominent part of it.
A couple of years ago, when it originally came out, it was something I had watched with admiration, but after Dad got sick and I saw the man, he disappeared right in front of my eyes; each time I saw this, it filled me with the complicated tangle of pride and dread.
Knowing what awaited, I spent the majority of my time watching Raina. The way she leaned forward when an intense moment played or when they broke down the strategy of a shot—I couldn’t help but be filled with relief that she was genuinely able to enjoy something that meant everything to me.
Well, not everything. Not anymore.
Halfway through, when the footage transitioned to the era of my dad’s prime, I felt her shift slightly. From old footage of him at the crease, his unmistakable focus and confidence as he made and broke records to clips of different commentators and their evident respect for him, his game and his captaincy. His charisma on and off the field was displayed in his interviews, press conferences and candid moments he shared with his teammates.
The camera lingered on an iconic shot of my dad raising his bad after his last century at the Oval, the crowd roaring in the background, and a lump formed in my throat as the narrator spoke.
“Often ahead of his time, his strategic approach to the sport wasn’t one without controversy. The Kings had a tradition of being too aggressive and too ruthless, but there is no denying the impact they had on the sport. And as Oliver King is set to make his debut in 2020, with an already stellar record in previous series, we can’t wait to see what kind of mark he brings to the sport.”
As the montage followed, my thoughts kept circling back to the comment. I had barely done anything to make a mark like the King men before I had, and I wondered if Dad was disappointed. There was never an expectation tied to me, but who was I if not my game?
A feather touch trailing on the back of my head pulled me out of my thoughts. “Do you agree with that?”
“With what?”
“Calling them ruthless… seems harsh for a sport that titles itself a gentlemen’s game.” She frowned as though almost offended for me, and a cool wave settled over me.
I brushed my thumb over hers, my focus back on the screen as the documentary shifted to different players. “I can only speak for my Dad. But even with him, it was more like he could be when he wanted to. He demanded a lot from his teammates, from himself….”
Too much, in the end. But I didn’t say that out loud. “He was magnetic, on and off the field. His mind worked out the game in a way I’ve never seen anyone else do it before, so to him, it never felt like a demand, rather than his norm.”
“That must be an impossible expectation.”
“For his teammates, yes. He never put it on me, though. He only ever asked one thing from me: to enjoy the game. But…”
“But instead of making you feel like it was an expectation, it made you feel like he didn’t believe in you,”
I nodded, and her eyes softened.
She waited for me to say something, and when I didn’t, her eyes flicked to the screen as they talked about the different formats, and she tilted her head.
“Why are they worried about T20s? Isn’t that bringing in a new generation of audience into the sport?”
I relaxed at the distraction.This, I could talk about.
“It is. The format made the sport… digestible for some and made it faster, but it has taken away the true essence of the sport. Test matches are about patience and endurance, and in comparison, T20s are fireworks.”
“But not everyone has five whole days to dedicate to a match.”
“Agreed, but T20s are constantly adapting their format to fit into the attention span of the new audience. Plus, commercialising it makes the sport be a hub for fixed matches and discourages viewers to get into the sport.”