A mindless tactic called "mind games"

Raju Korti
In keeping with their utterly misplaced belief of "playing cricket the hard way" -- whatever that means -- Australian spinner Nathan Lyon has smugly predicted that Australians will whitewash India 5-0 in the ensuing Border-Gavaskar Trophy. Now Lyon is no soothsayer. He does what most overseas cricketers, especially the Australians have been doing doing, and pompously called as "mind games". It is an old hat that has already outlived its utility in times of high stakes cut-throatism.

A representational pic.

In the modern era of cricket, mind games have become increasingly redundant, meaningless, and largely ineffective. While psychological tactics once held value in unsettling opponents, today's professional cricketers armed with sports psychologists, data analysts and immense mental resilience, are far less susceptible to such strategies. If they can be called strategies at all.

Lyon's prediction of a 5-0 win for Australia is a classic example of mind games in a game that thrives on its so called "glorious uncertainties". The idea is to plant seeds of doubts in the opposition's mind. In this case, the ones on whose soil they come to play in an annual jamboree. Unfortunately for Lyon and his "hard playing" team-mates, India having made short work of Australia in consecutive Test series, including the famous 2020-21 victory in Australia despite a heavily depleted squad, is not going to be fazed by such comments. Players today are not only physically prepared but also mentally fortified to handle the pressures and verbal barrages that comes with high-stakes cricket.

Mind games also have this disconcerting trend of boomeranging on those who deploy them. Remember how during the 2019 Ashes Australian skipper Tim Paine famously sledged Jofra Archer trying to throw him off his game. Instead, Archer's response was swift and clinical. He produced a match-winning bowling spell that left the Australians reeling. Through their "mind games" Australia snatched defeat from the jaws of victory. Just a day before, Bangladesh wicketkeeper aimed to throw the ball at Rishabh Pant's injured leg instead of the stumps. Pant gave it back to him with interest. Wasn't it the same Border-Gavaskar Trophy that after having made tall claims of routing India 4-1, Sehwag responded by saying India would thrash Australia 3-0. Which is what finally happened.

In a time where professional athletes are more attuned to the mental aspects of the game relying on mind games to gain advantage seems futile and counter-productive. Performance on the field now decisively overshadows attempts to rattle opponents through psychological warfare.

The proliferation of media and social platforms has diluted the impact of mind games. What was once a controlled tactic, exchanged within the confines of press conferences or the field is now quickly dissected and debunked by even half an analyst, commentator or fans online. Players often themselves respond with humour or dismissive gestures on social media further reducing the sting of such poor ploys. In this eco-system, actions on the field dominate the narrative, leaving verbal jabs more as fleeting distractions rather than strategic tools. Today's cricketers are trained to focus solely on performance, making mind games an outdated and ineffective practice. The ridicule that the team subjects itself to is the proverbial insult to the injury.

Forget sportsman's spirit. Rubbing a competitive rival the wrong way could potentially backfire. Moral of the story: Don't shoot off with your mouth. Let your game do all the talking.