“It is not the finest and strongest men who are crowned at the Olympics games, but they who enter the lists.”
It is fair to say that there is little of what Aristotle said or rather, what little of Aristotle I’ve read that is relevant to the ICC Cricket World Cup 2015.
Yet the quote above, which, in all honesty, is second-hand from a Bobby Kennedy speech, could not be more apt for Scotland’s three-wicket defeat to New Zealand last night.
Scotland was by no means the finest or the strongest, but just by performing at the World Cup they are starting to prove their (potential) success.
To start, their batting was by no means fine or strong. After just two overs they had lost two wickets for one run.
A little while later, they had four batsmen knocked over for a paltry 12. Their captain, Preston Mommsen, was one among many who struggled to deal with The Black Caps’ aggressive swing bowling.
In the opening stages of the match, Scotland looked out of sorts to say the least.
But they then rallied, to an extent at least.
Of course, it was more of a Greek recovery than a show of German economic might, but Machan and Berrington certainly held the fort and showed great resolve, both knocking half centuries in the process.
The Saltires’ ultimate total of 146 was so pitiful though that few would have begrudged them rolling over in surrender.
But that was not to be. Scotland, despite their dire situation, carried on fighting against New Zealand and, for a glimmer of a second, even brought about thoughts of an upset.
Of course, this was almost entirely to do with the casual Black Caps’ batting.
The Kiwis battered the ball about with an unbecoming arrogance that quickly caught up with them. They thought they were cruise control and very nearly crashed into a very big wall.
Scotland’s bowling was neither particularly fine or particularly strong, but it was enough when combined with New Zealand’s offhand performance with the bat.
The final result a Scottish defeat by three wickets was more respectable than the passage of play actually allowed for.
But nevertheless, while Scotland have shown that they do not have the strongest or the finest players, they have shown they have the character to move forward.
Just by playing at the World Cup, they have the opportunity to succeed.
With games against Afghanistan and Bangladesh as well as England – still to come, Aristotle could be right on the money. And not for the first time, I imagine.