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Any elite athlete in sight of a record, in any sport, should put their head down and go for it.
Proteas all-rounder Wiaan Mulder was superb against Zimbabwe, but he opted not to attempt to break a world record with a new mark in his sights. Picture: Gareth Copley/Getty Images
It’s not that I don’t get it. I get it. The only problem is that I don’t get it.
After the Proteas declared at lunch on Monday, on day two of the second Test against Zimbabwe, I think we were all asking the same question: Why?
The national team had nearly four days to bowl out Zimbabwe twice, so why would Wiaan Mulder stop batting just 33 runs short of Brian Lara’s world record of 400 not out?
Fortunately, our questions were answered by Mulder. However, his explanation was bizarre.
Respect for Lara
According to the stand-in skipper, he decided that Lara deserved to retain his record because Mulder is not yet considered a legend of the sport.
How strange. If Mulder wants to become a cricket icon, the only way is to break new ground, so why stop batting just to preserve another player’s record?
I get it. Zimbabwe are hardly the world’s best cricketing nation, so Mulder probably felt guilty taking Lara’s record, which was achieved against England.
But I also don’t get it. How is Mulder going to become a legend if he feels like it’s wrong to break the records of other players?
And he seemed happy enough to take Hashim Amla’s national record of 311 by reaching 367. Is Amla not a legend?
No easy feat
To score 400 runs in a Test innings against any team is a big deal, and Mulder should have kept going.
If making 400 against Zimbabwe was easy, why didn’t Lara do it? Or Sachin Tendulkar? Or Virender Sehwag?
The fact is that Zimbabwe have Test status, so they are fair game.
The strangest thing for me was not that Mulder stopped batting short of Lara’s record, it’s that he said if he was in the same situation, he might do it again.
That’s not a good way for a professional cricketer to think. Any elite athlete in sight of a record, in any sport, must put their head down and go for it.
Mulder earned the right to challenge Lara’s record and he should have taken his opportunity.
Maybe one day he will get another chance, or maybe he won’t.
Hopefully when he eventually retires, he doesn’t regret the decision.
