Spurs boss Ange Postecoglou and Jordan Henderson may feel media is the enemy but we all have bad days at work
Sports stars may feel the media is their enemy.
Friends of the column will know I’ve been watching sports teams I care about getting beaten with near-frightening regularity this winter. The Women’s Ashes played out on TNT under my increasingly disbelieving gaze, before England’s men went to India and attempted to counteract hosts who, with cheeky abandon, replaced most of their icons.
And then of course there’s Spurs, who are in Carabao Cup semi-final action on Thursday with a 1-0 advantage over Liverpool, amazingly enough. In cricket matches alone I stacked up a 0&9 viewing streak, until England’s men claimed a win in the third T20 and confused the hell out of me.
I am, to borrow a Jose Mourinho line, a specialist in failure. And here is what I’ve learned.
Your day-to-day processes need to stay the same whether you are winning or losing. England player Sophie Ecclestone grabbed headlines by refusing an interview for our Women’s Ashes studio.
No malice intended by her, obviously, but if England had been trampling all over the Aussies this would not have happened.
Plenty of people feel ‘the media’ are the enemy and that poor beleaguered athletes like Jordan Henderson shouldn’t be ‘forced’ to answer stupid questions.
It is true stupid questions get asked but equally stupid passes are also played, penalties get missed – everyone has bad days at work.
Admittedly most people don’t then have to publicly discuss their cock-ups. ‘Can you explain to the fans why you’re late and why you brought along a charger rather than the presentation required for the very angry client?’
‘When they said “power point” I thought they meant…’
But the reality is much of professional sport is a vastly well-remunerated entertainment industry. And the machinery that enables it to be staged and broadcast is a big part of its success.
Of course the quality of the performances and the gripping nature of the contests are the selling point – no one still believes it is exclusively down to Richard Keys and Andy Gray, but if no one can see it people can’t get hooked.
So from an athlete perspective the process of interviews for TV, written media, etc, is part of that responsibility. In the office it might be volunteering to run out and get the presentation – or delivering it to the best of your ability despite the fluster.
For me, the process might be conducting an interview I’d rather not face with the same level of preparation as usual or planning the whole segment on missed chances or dropped catches when all you want is for people to think women’s cricket is flawless and Tottenham will win a trophy. But you can’t opt out just because it’s not as much fun. You’ll learn from it.
How about pressure? As a teenager I performed the solo in the Tchaikovsky violin concerto at Birmingham Symphony Hall. Beforehand my violin teacher said if you feel overwhelming emotion during the performance you are doing the audience a disservice: you are providing them with the emotional experience – it is not for you.
This relates to the show around a poor performance. You are a conduit for the audience’s emotion but you can’t get lost in it. It is still supposed to be entertainment.
From an athlete perspective, yes, the pressure is great. Look at Ruben Amorim trying to rebuild Manchester United with the world on his back. Emotion is important if used right – it can drive success.
But if you lose your head considering the magnitude of what’s at stake you are letting those fans down.
Speaking of fans, I have also discovered that no matter how many defeats we are on, in the thick of it I still believe the miracle will happen. But I will virulently assert that we definitely will lose before every game.
You would not want my mentality in an actual dressing room, and this approach partly explains why I never managed to succeed as a professional athlete. So COYS then. Looking forward to 3-0 Liverpool later.
Kate is presenting TNT Sports’ international cricket coverage, also available on the discovery+ app
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