A friend of mine hates American sports, partly because they don’t play “proper” sports like football, cricket and snooker but mostly because as he puts it they “can’t sit down for 5 minutes without wanting to get up and stuff their faces”. And I have to admit growing up watching American movies the crowd at baseball or basketball games always seemed more interested in what was going on around the stadium rather than on the pitch. But then again when you have James Bond dressed as a clown trying to defuse a bomb it can admittedly be distracting.
Whether this is a true reflection of the recreational habits of the average American remains to be seen but from my own recent experience of watching cricket these worrying habits seem to have penetrated international cricket in this country, particularly within the realms of 20/20 where you are from the moment they open the gates seemingly against the clock in terms of gluttony.
From the moment you arrive at the ground there is very little desire to actually strap yourself into your designated seat and spectate. Like a school boy avoiding homework the average 20/20 cricket fan will do anything to avoid watching the action. And maybe there is a valid reason behind this ambivalence as once you are comfortably seated and a level piece of tarmac has been found to rest your beers you are then having to rise from your newly acquired seat every 30 seconds to let the whole townsfolk through. Instead of following the easy to read signs on the end of each row to find their seats they stop mid row and chat – you wouldn’t mind if it was cricket related.
Hard reading a ticket stub isn’t it? So they stand obscuring everyone's view. That is until a juiced local who can stand this bourgeois flower show shit no more shouts- “Find a seat and sit down”. So they find the nearest seat. But this isn’t good enough as now that the group is fractured they are worried that Bill, Mary, June and Brian will not find them, so they begin to locate, like looking for a patch of sand on a pebble beach, a group of seats so they can all sit together. And guess what, they don’t do this sitting down or between overs. England by this stage have lost 2 wickets and barely anyone has noticed.
By overs 7 and 8 spectators become like newly born babies demanding their next feed. If you are a part of a stag do, a gopher is normally despatched to bring back quantities of beer an octopus would struggle to handle.
“Get a dozen fish and chips “shouts Mad Brian “and more beers “. More beers? On top of the 50 you’ve just ordered? It’s thirsty work missing cricket. When you do get to see the action the general response is one of goading, constantly daring the batsman in the middle to hit the ball out of the park as it gives them another chance to rise to their feet. " Do it again KP" shouts a man who thinks trying to hit a tight line and length spinner for a six is like trying to do that trick when you pop your shoulder out. And then a hush descends and everything settles down, no one needs the toilet , no one needs refreshment and suddenly like the sermont on the mount everyone is paying attention. " This is shit " shouts one and suddenly it's over. Normal service resumed.
Don’t for a minute get me wrong, sporting atmospheres are built on crowd participation and when you are paying £45 for a ticket you want to get the most enjoyment out of it as possible. However, when one’s enjoyment comes at a price of stopping others from enjoying the action out in the middle then it is to the detriment of people who are there first and foremost to enjoy the game
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