Athletes and supporters are compelled to wait, with no guarantee of a satisfying resolution
Waiting and cricket go hand in glove. It is an instruction barked urgently as a defensive push scuttles towards a fielder. It is the next batter, padded up, visualising their fate. It is the commentator’s lament as rain pools on tarpaulin covers.
Cricket does not have a monopoly on waiting in sport, but the duration of a Test provides room for the passage of time to take on great significance, so much so that a contest could be understood almost entirely in the context of waiting. The pitch? How could you know how it’s faring until both sides have batted, or seen how much it turns on days four and five? The ball? At various times it’s waiting to reverse, or soften, or respawn. Captaincy involves applying strategies then waiting long enough to see them bear fruit. Waiting too long before arriving at the crease is even a legitimate mode of dismissal.
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