Is Wimbledon all about tennis? Or, is it beyond tennis? While watching the men's final at Wimbledon-22 last evening, I felt that it went much beyond tennis! It transcended the boundaries of human behaviour, communication, role of a teacher and team work. How? Read on.
Novak Djokovic (Joko in short) won his 4th straight men's singles title and 7th overall defeating Nick Kyrgios (Nik in short). Great feat. But the match which lasted over three hours, had many lessons for all of us. Now some of you may comment 'Do you see life-lessons in everything? Plants, trees, insects, birds, animals, movies and even a tennis match?' Well, perhaps yes! But you can agree or disagree after reading this short story.
We can learn some life-lessons even from structures like a lighthouse. Our story 'Lighthouses and Human Beings' may interest you.
Team Work and Teachers
Though tennis singles is regarded as an individual pursuit, but every single player after winning the title gives credit to his or her 'team'. But what does this 'team' mean in a singles match? The team refers to the coaches, fitness trainers, physios, psychologists and others who help a player to become a champion. Those who watched the match, would recall that the first bear hug which Joko gave after winning the title was to his 'team' in the players box. He hugged, shook hands warmly and thanked each of his team members first. Only then he went to share his joy with his family. This also reinforces an old Hindi couplet गुरु गोविन्द दोऊं खड़े, काके लागूं पाय। बलिहारी गुरु आपने, गोविन्द दियो बताय। It explains the dilemma of a learner who on seeing both the God as well as his teacher, asks himself to whom should he pay his respects first? The God or the teacher? He chooses the teacher because it is the teacher who has explained to him what God is! So, teacher first even on a tennis court!
Positivity Pays
Positive reinforcement goes a long way in motivating human beings. This was so well brought out during the match. Joko's team kept applauding every point that he won. And more importantly, they gestured 'never mind' when Joko lost a point. On the contrary, there appeared to be a communication breakdown between Nik and his team. Primarily because Nik shouted and swore at his team many times during the match. How can an individual remain motivated with such an agitated and negative state of mind.
Emotional Stability
Joko's focus and emotional strength prevailed when he overcame the first set loss to Nik. Even though Nik continued to fire aces, he kept his cool. On the other hand, Nik showed his frustration and anger many times on the court. He demanded that a fan be removed from the crowd for distracting him in his serve. Quoting AFP, 'His afternoon threatened to unravel completely when he was broken from 40-0 up in his ninth game, fuming and swearing loudly at his team in the player's box'. Emotional stability of a player is the key when faced with adversity whether it is tennis or golf. Readers may browse our earlier story titled 'Golf and Yoga' which brings out the power of concentration. Joko gave a live demonstration of how to remain focused.
Sporting Spirit
On more than one occasion, Joko appreciated his opponent's winning point. It reflected his true sporting spirit. Even after the match during the presentation ceremony, he praised Nik. Nik in his speech had said he wasn't sure if he would be back at Wimbledon next time. Joko in his speech encouraged him 'Nik, you will be back!' In fact, Nik said that Joko was "a bit of God". Their body language, gestures and comments on each other spoke of good sporting spirit despite their frosty relationship on the social media earlier. See the pictures below.
Communication
After the match, Joko while conversing with the Royal Highness in the Member's Hall showed great conversational ability. He enquired about their young son's interest in tennis and how she felt as a parent seeing the child play. It was an instantaneous connect. Similarly, the way he credited his father when he was a five-year young child aspiring to learn tennis, touched many hearts. His ability to communicate so effectively with people, is another winning stroke. All of us need to reinforce the power of good communication in our lives- be it as a student, teacher, parent, working professional or a leader. You may like to browse our earlier post titled 'Communication is Existence'.
So much for the take-aways from a tennis match. Do share if you would like to add a point or two. Life means continuous learning. Even the teachers keep learning as brought out in our story 'A Teacher Keeps Learning'. The day we stop learning, life comes to a halt! See Ghumakkad's logo below.
Happy learning and thanks for browsing.
- Harsh-the-Ghumakkad/ Secunderabad/ 11th July, 2022
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