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| Wherever you come across a "Misbah", go for 'em. |
News media survive on crises.
Imagine all gets well. Things sail smooth. There is no Trump. No Modi. No Lady Gaga. No Meera. No Chris Gayle. No Shahid Afridi.
In such a world, what could be a news?
Why would cameras click?
Why would heads turn?
And why would people rush to their supply lines aka TV remotes?
Nonetheless, something bad has to happen. Man has to bite dog. Elsewise how could newsmen justify their sole existence?
************
Cricket is not just a sport any more.
Over the time, it has evolved into an entertainment industry. What if Amir hadn’t overstepped in Lords’? Or Afridi hadn’t chewed the white leather in front of 26 cameras? Or Shoaib Akhtar hadn’t hurled his bat at Asif? How many news hours could have gone boring as usual?
Someone must hit someone in the dressing room. Someone must be caught dancing in a night club. Or talking to a bookie. Or at least inviting girls to his hotel room. And once a year, a captain must resign for any possible reason.
That’s how a calendar year of Pakistan Cricket should unfold.
************
But then, there comes a problem.
The team, that would keep offering spicy items and newsworthy fiascos, suddenly goes quiet. There are no more hints of infighting. No more shades of the dismal days gone by. No more news of corruption. No more blame games.
And the focus becomes Cricket.
Only Cricket.
And the man, who makes it all happen, is anything but glamorous. He is an ageing gentleman. He plays his game. He lives it. And he speaks nothing but it.
For a newsman, that must be annoying. For it would be hard to dig a news out of his offerings on press mics. His thoughts would be so coherent that to raise a question would be as hard as being him.
As being Misbah.
That is unlike a Pakistan Captain.
A Pakistan Captain should be a fireman on the field. And a fire-cracker off it. He should blame his team. He should vent out on his board. He should get in a tangle with his selectors. He should issue statements against his coaches. He should resign. He should take it back. And he should repeat it.
He should NOT be a “Misbah”.
***********
Misbah, in his entire career, has played only Cricket.
He was never interested in any other games. He never responded to what people spoke of him. He was barely concerned with how many in the press box were on his side. And he instilled this into his men too. Like him, his team also got quiet.
To realise how bad his approach was for Pakistan, you have to be a sports reporter in Pakistan.
For a moment, put yourself in a reporter’s shoes. Your bureau chief needs a story. You have to bring one. To help you, whole universe should conspire and make something go wrong. And, eventually, your boss would be happy with you.
But out there, there are guys like Misbah who don’t let the universe conspire for you. Who make you sweat your blood, for one story. And they just bore you. In that case, you are left with no more than two options.
Either question your own existence.
Or simply question his.
And make a news.
No story? Let’s make one.
And that is a lot easier than questioning your own existence. Added benefit is that it brings ratings too. So wherever you come across a Misbah, you go for it.
*************
And that’s all that went wrong with Misbah.
Otherwise, we all know, he was a fine gentleman.
Nonetheless, something bad has to happen. Man has to bite dog. Elsewise how could newsmen justify their sole existence?
************
Cricket is not just a sport any more.
Over the time, it has evolved into an entertainment industry. What if Amir hadn’t overstepped in Lords’? Or Afridi hadn’t chewed the white leather in front of 26 cameras? Or Shoaib Akhtar hadn’t hurled his bat at Asif? How many news hours could have gone boring as usual?
Someone must hit someone in the dressing room. Someone must be caught dancing in a night club. Or talking to a bookie. Or at least inviting girls to his hotel room. And once a year, a captain must resign for any possible reason.
That’s how a calendar year of Pakistan Cricket should unfold.
************
But then, there comes a problem.
The team, that would keep offering spicy items and newsworthy fiascos, suddenly goes quiet. There are no more hints of infighting. No more shades of the dismal days gone by. No more news of corruption. No more blame games.
And the focus becomes Cricket.
Only Cricket.
And the man, who makes it all happen, is anything but glamorous. He is an ageing gentleman. He plays his game. He lives it. And he speaks nothing but it.
For a newsman, that must be annoying. For it would be hard to dig a news out of his offerings on press mics. His thoughts would be so coherent that to raise a question would be as hard as being him.
As being Misbah.
That is unlike a Pakistan Captain.
A Pakistan Captain should be a fireman on the field. And a fire-cracker off it. He should blame his team. He should vent out on his board. He should get in a tangle with his selectors. He should issue statements against his coaches. He should resign. He should take it back. And he should repeat it.
He should NOT be a “Misbah”.
***********
Misbah, in his entire career, has played only Cricket.
He was never interested in any other games. He never responded to what people spoke of him. He was barely concerned with how many in the press box were on his side. And he instilled this into his men too. Like him, his team also got quiet.
To realise how bad his approach was for Pakistan, you have to be a sports reporter in Pakistan.
For a moment, put yourself in a reporter’s shoes. Your bureau chief needs a story. You have to bring one. To help you, whole universe should conspire and make something go wrong. And, eventually, your boss would be happy with you.
But out there, there are guys like Misbah who don’t let the universe conspire for you. Who make you sweat your blood, for one story. And they just bore you. In that case, you are left with no more than two options.
Either question your own existence.
Or simply question his.
And make a news.
No story? Let’s make one.
And that is a lot easier than questioning your own existence. Added benefit is that it brings ratings too. So wherever you come across a Misbah, you go for it.
*************
And that’s all that went wrong with Misbah.
Otherwise, we all know, he was a fine gentleman.
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