Sportspersons often speak about a balance between enjoying public support and having their personal space.
Adulation lifts them up. But it can be counter-productive too. Before a high-pressure match, they want to be in a zone to attain laser-sharp concentration. That is part of an intense preparation.
Recently, India’s woman batsman Jemimah Rodrigues revealed the excess attention she was getting during the recent Women’s World Cup.
Following her spectacular innings in the semi-final, her WhatsApp was flooded with messages.
She revealed that she received messages from nearly a thousand unknown numbers following her crucial knock. The flood of communication made it difficult for her to maintain her focus as the tournament headed toward its conclusion.
Things became even more challenging as she was already processing the emotional impact of the semi-final victory while preparing for the upcoming World Cup final.
“I don’t know how random people started getting my number. I’m not even exaggerating, but I had 1000 WhatsApp messages. I couldn’t take it because firstly, a lot had happened in that game. A lot of my emotions itself were there. I’m preparing for a final and the tournament is not over. Yes, I played a knock. Yes, we won. Yes, India was in the final. But, we still had a World Cup final to win,” she told a cricket website in an interview.
To manage the situation, Rodrigues chose to remove WhatsApp entirely. Before doing so, she told only a small circle of close contacts about how they could reach her.
“Even if I was not reading the message, it was just buzzing. And I just knew that people were messaging me and I just wanted to prepare for the finals. So, till the finals, I didn’t install WhatsApp,” she added.
During this period, she kept her social media use to a minimum, posting just one update after the match. She stayed disconnected until the World Cup final was over.
It’s vastly reported how social media makes solitude harder for sportspersons when they need it the most. It blurs praise and intrusion. It fills the mind when the mind needs quiet. As Jemima proved, it can sometimes be a weight and not a tool.
Also Read: Kohli Inspired Us To Beat Pakistan: Jemimah https://www.vibesofindia.com/kohli-inspired-us-to-beat-pakistan-jemimah/
