I imagine there are many who frequent the CW site and its forum who find all the posts, anguish and nit-picking about the nighttime curfew – plus the disapproval and restrictions on when and where alcohol is allowed – an increasingly irritating and depressing saga. An alternative, radical approach to reflection is outlined here.
The way Rob Key spoke to the press recently about his conversations with Ben Stokes about the “culture of the England men’s cricket team” and the “need for change” made me think there was a discussion going on equal to many days time. Since neither of them are highly educated, I imagine that over time they will have several conversations lasting about an hour, endlessly repeated.
Background
In his acclaimed book, Philosophical studies – published posthumously in 1953 – Ludwig Wittgenstein argues that the “enchantment” (or fascinating/fascinating nature) of philosophical problems arises from philosophers’ mistaken attempts to consider the meaning of words independently of their context, usage, and grammar – which he called language went on vacation. Philosophical problems arise, he argued, when language is displaced from its proper home into a metaphysical environment where all familiar and necessary landmarks and contextual cues are removed.
Instead, philosophers should “leave the ice without friction and return to the rough ground of ordinary language in use.” There are many examples of how to avoid the first false steps, so that philosophical problems are not solved, but dissolved. “The clarity we aim for is indeed total clarity. And this means that philosophical problems must completely disappear.”
The interpretation of this statement in the context of the new regime for England cricketers starting in May 2022 should be clear.
Portrait of L.V
Around the same time, the outstanding historian J. H. (Jack) Plumb wrote in 1950:
The great problem for philosophers and theologians in early eighteenth-century England, as it had been ever since science began to dominate intellectual life, was to reconcile reason with religion… Interest in this battle of books (or thought) was not limited to the participants, for religious literature was an easy sell, then as now.
Portrait of Jack Plumb
Two decades later, Tom Stoppard – in his brilliant multifaceted stage play jumpers – satirized the moral philosopher’s obsession with the question Does God exist? Originally performed at the Old Vic Theater in London in February 1972.
Portrait of Tom Stoppard
In both the latter cases, it foreshadows the intensity and obsession of this new Brendon McCullum regime.
And I think it is very likely that the playwright and cricket lover Harold Pinter, if he were with us today, would make a play out of the whole thing. It is to be enjoyed on two levels, as are most of his plays, e.g Stupid waiter (1957), Birthday (1958) and Caretaker (1960). It doesn’t take much adaptation! It’s more a matter of getting the cast right and fine-tuning the actors’ lines.
A radical alternative approach
So I proposed a solution to put an end to all the chatter about curfews and alcohol for English players. In a nutshell, I urge team management to step on the uneven ground of laissez-faire – inaction related to player self-determination. To explain:
If I were a selector, I would pick England players based on recent form, in Tests and county matches, and drop them when she wasn’t available. The state of being in or out of shape is a topic that Mike Birley has written extensively about in his well-received book titled On the form (first published in September 2017). Along with that, I would completely reject the imposition of curfews and restrictions/restrictions on alcohol consumption.
It is possible – and I think should be – to go further and drop a player from the Test squad, even if he is performing satisfactorily or reasonably well, if he is deemed not to be up to his existing ability – i.e. performance is much lower than that. (Potential capacity is another matter.)
Selectors already have to make subjective judgments on a whole range of issues when selecting a Test team. The judgment required in this case is similar in nature to a number of others. Such as: how will he cope when faced with express deliveries, which are still rare; will he be able to cope with 100,000 spectators at the MCG, most of whom will be heavily favoured; will his recent series of coaching sessions to iron out a certain error hold up in match play; can he pair effectively with the rookie number five in the batting order?
This action in response to a player’s underperformance relative to their ability will be taken regardless of the reason(s), which should not and will not be made public. And here’s the key payoff: there will be no more investigations of those who are too late; who drank too much alcohol where and when; whether he was really intoxicated when he met strangers on the way to the hotel; whether these players were aggressive in a public place; and so on – it distracts everyone’s attention.
The White Horse Pub in Parsons Green, South West London:
place for Ben Stokes and Gus Atkinson at 7thousand June after the Lord’s test.
In this scenario, recent actually The system of “tenure” introduced by Brendan McCallum – similar to the job guarantees granted to university teachers in the name of academic freedom – must be abolished; and Central contracts with the ECB (concluded in 2000) should be cancelled. Just pay test players properly; and, by the way, not in a very pyramidal way, where the elite receive a disproportionately large reward.
All in all, this approach to life should, I believe, serve to give a stronger incentive to those on the fringes – and those on the fringes too – to fight for a place in the England team. In doing so, it should also help stem the drain on T20 leagues around the world.
If there are fistfights and the like in pubs and nightclubs, the law of the land can take care of it as long as there are CCTV systems.