The greatest lesson ever learned are on the fields and not in the closed doors on the classes are quite often heard statements. But what has really has prompted this view is an interesting lesson by itself.The list of interesting tale at the end of intriguing matches have often gone down in the annals of history not just because they entertained the crowds, but the lesson that they taught the crowd. List of such incident that strikes my mind are the Edgbaston Test match of 2005, where Freddie console Lee after losing the test. The 2008 finals between rafa and roger at the australian open, where rafa acknowledges that roger is still the best. The lesson of humility amidst wild celebrations are such cornerstones of such epic incidents that down the history these incidents will be referred for such heart rendering incidents rather than the winner of the match.
Each legendary sporting ground has a place dedicated to the greatest truth written by pioneering poets and author, such as the Wimbledon center court near the players entrance has a line mentioned from Rudyard Kipling, " If you can meet triumph and disaster and treat two impostors the same...". The sporting arena is the only place where the best awaits to ascend the surface, or the best sinks from the surface. No wonder one need to learn to treat both the incidents with same due regards.
Success and Failure on grounds are separated by mere fraction of time, space and energy in most of the events.The pain of losing from a whisker hurts deeper from the agony of body injuries in the game. Losing on the ground is lesson by itself, for it gives you an opportunity to reguard to prepare again for the glory next time. No wonder individuals who really lose the game but not the lesson come back to win emphatically the next time. Well no points for guessing the 5-0 whitewash in Ashes 2007, nor the Edberg-Becker Wimbledon final classics. The list of such games and matches are listless, where in the loser comes back to claim back his title. Such incident do keep the magic rivalry ensuring on and on. The winner always take the cup and the glory and rarely the motivation to keep going on next time, but the loser takes only the defeat to his advantage to win next time. If losing still gives you nothing it makes the next victory sweeter. So lets remember losing and winning are no doubt part and parcel of the games and sports( extensively used cliche), but the lessons learned from either of them are priceless.
We lose not when we lose the game, but lose to learn the lesson from the game. For the lessons once learnt, we know we rarely do we lose.The real champions are not the ones who have tasted success extensively, but the ones who have learnt the lesson from losing. Since for every failure one endures he gets an opportunity to get things right, and the champions keeps playing till he gets everything right. So next time when we face losing, remember to take your lesson back home.
