Wisden English ?

pooch · Apr 7th, 2004, 03:15

Not a cricket fan at all but i guess you get forced into seeming one after living in India for while. I did wonder and am really curious to know this though. I thought cricket was sort of an elite sport. I have been watching quite a bit of the ongoing Indo-Pak series and there's this Aussie or Kiwi bloke that interviews a player or two as they exit the field between sessions. I thought anyone that got into cricket would be a public school product or something equivalent but most of these guys spoke what I now term "Wisden English" just about adequate knowledge of the language to express things like "great game" "thanks to God" "lucky" "played well" etc..
I am now beginning to think cricket in the subcontinent is truly reflective of what one sees on the streets here often, ie. those kids playing a crude form of the game could be tommorow's Tendulkar, Dravid or Laxman, true ??

SHIMLA · Apr 7th, 2004, 08:43

What you call a 'crude" form of the game is where tomorrow's Tendulkars will emerge from. If you are in Mumbai, just spend some time at the Shivaji Park ground, the nursery of Mumbai cricket and and at one time the nursery of Indian cricket; and you will understand what I mean.

Fluent English was never a pre-requisite for becoming a Test cricketer. An Oxford bred will forget his chaste English in a hurry when facing the thunderbolts of the Rawalpindi Express or while receiving caning from Virender Sehwag! Ultimately, it is the language of one's cricket that is seen and remembered!

rab · Apr 7th, 2004, 08:47

Yes true. Some of the most lovely experiences I had in India was watching the children play cricket on the open spaces of Indian cities. They often used a real ball and had no pads, gloves nor box (ouch!).

This is cricket in its purest form - an enjoyable game for anyone to take part in - played on the dusty flat earth by children who picture themselves at Lord's or at the Adelaide Oval captaining India against England or Australia.

I also think it is shame that the sport does have its so-called experts who mystify potential participants or viewers from non-cricketing countries with jargon by the bucket full. I'd like to round them all up and take them to the coast for a game of beach cricket!

Apr 7th, 2004, 03:15	#1
pooch Senior Member Join Date: Jan 2002 Location: Middle East <---->India Posts: 384	Wisden English ? Not a cricket fan at all but i guess you get forced into seeming one after living in India for while. I did wonder and am really curious to know this though. I thought cricket was sort of an elite sport. I have been watching quite a bit of the ongoing Indo-Pak series and there's this Aussie or Kiwi bloke that interviews a player or two as they exit the field between sessions. I thought anyone that got into cricket would be a public school product or something equivalent but most of these guys spoke what I now term "Wisden English" just about adequate knowledge of the language to express things like "great game" "thanks to God" "lucky" "played well" etc.. I am now beginning to think cricket in the subcontinent is truly reflective of what one sees on the streets here often, ie. those kids playing a crude form of the game could be tommorow's Tendulkar, Dravid or Laxman, true ??

Apr 7th, 2004, 08:43	#2
SHIMLA Member Join Date: Jul 2003 Location: Yangon, MYANMAR Posts: 4,125	What you call a 'crude" form of the game is where tomorrow's Tendulkars will emerge from. If you are in Mumbai, just spend some time at the Shivaji Park ground, the nursery of Mumbai cricket and and at one time the nursery of Indian cricket; and you will understand what I mean. Fluent English was never a pre-requisite for becoming a Test cricketer. An Oxford bred will forget his chaste English in a hurry when facing the thunderbolts of the Rawalpindi Express or while receiving caning from Virender Sehwag! Ultimately, it is the language of one's cricket that is seen and remembered! __________________ Whoever said money can't buy happiness didn't know where to shop !

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Apr 7th, 2004, 08:47	#3
rab Honorary Mod Join Date: Sep 2001 Location: McLaren Vale, South Australia Posts: 1,216	Yes true. Some of the most lovely experiences I had in India was watching the children play cricket on the open spaces of Indian cities. They often used a real ball and had no pads, gloves nor box (ouch!). This is cricket in its purest form - an enjoyable game for anyone to take part in - played on the dusty flat earth by children who picture themselves at Lord's or at the Adelaide Oval captaining India against England or Australia. I also think it is shame that the sport does have its so-called experts who mystify potential participants or viewers from non-cricketing countries with jargon by the bucket full. I'd like to round them all up and take them to the coast for a game of beach cricket!

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