Understanding the ‘Dos and Don’ts’ for spectators, support staff and coaches when an athlete doesn’t reach his mark comes from the different insights that Dr. Chaitanya Sridhar shares about the situation at The Sportz Planet SportSci Summit Season 2. Dr. Sridhar reiterates the importance of keeping the situation supportive, constructive and empathetic while building a rapport with the athlete and creating an atmosphere if things seem to go wrong. This view can be applied directly to the current furore against Rohit Sharma being left out of the Indian Cricket Team while the Border-Gavaskar Trophy is ongoing and the verbal bashing that he is undergoing from fans.
Mental And Emotional Pressure
According to Dr. Sridhar, facing such tough times for someone like Rohit Sharma really is hard to bear with all the mental and emotional pressure that’s building up. What the fans, support staff and coaches need to understand is that bad performances are not a sign of lack of effort or less commitment. Support and constructive criticism can help a person come out of such a situation rather than falling prey to harsh criticism that makes the pressure more severe.
Verbal Bashing And Its Effect
The recent verbal bashing by the fans in the case of Rohit Sharma adds further to his burden. What this athlete needs from society right now is some encouragement and empathy, says Dr. Sridhar. When there is all this pressure built up outside from him, the athlete is unable to come back fast. Thus instead of fueling the fire with negativity, one should provide succor and remembrance of earlier success stories with faith that this athlete would also come back.
Empathy And Patience
Another key point made by Dr. Sridhar was that empathy and patience need to be displayed. Fans and stakeholders must understand that even the most accomplished athletes experience periods of bad form. Rohit Sharma has been a match-winner for India in several high-pressure situations and deserves to get his rhythm back. Judgment rather than being instantaneous, long-term development calls for patience and understanding.
In regard to the management of athletes’ mental well-being, the role of support staff is very enormous, according to Dr. Sridhar. Coaches and team management will have to establish an environment of growth and recuperation for their athletes. To Rohit Sharma, it will offer a chance of re-grouping and reassessing and coming back to form and his coaches as well as his teammates would be very important in the course.
Replace Criticism With Support
The current criticism around Rohit Sharma should be replaced by support and empathy. Now is the time to acknowledge his previous contributions and give him space to recover. It will only benefit Rohit but also Indian cricket.
The Sportz Planet Desk,
Atharva Shetye
