July 3, 2018
I am skipping two weeks of travel posts to comment on the recent bakbakan.
I saw the video clips of the FIBA 2019 Basketball World Cup Asian Qualifiers game between the Philippines and Australia. It turned brawl and ramble between our own Gilas Pilipinas and guests Australians. That was regrettable.
Each side has their own reasons to justify the lost of patience. According to the reports, The Australians ripped off part of PLDT’s logo sticker on the floor because it was slippery. That already didn’t sit well with our players. During the practice game, there were already some tensions among the players. So when the actual game came, siguro nga pikon na silang lahat.
Basketball is a contact sports. There’s always someone getting hit accidentally and or intentionally. My husband used to play basketball.
He lost a tooth when the guy he was guarding hit his jaw. Edmund’s nose was broken when someone made a lay-up and intentionally used his elbow to smack Edmund’s face. Edmund broke his knee while playing basketball with younger boys. Until now his knee is still broken because he chose not to have it operated on.
I was terrified when I found out that Edmund was playing for the UST varsity team. I didn’t want to have a boyfriend who was a player. As a little girl I’ve seen my brothers getting hit and rolling on the floor while playing basketball and that was no fun to see and remember for a young girl.
My son played for the Xavier Basketball varsity when he was in grade 3. He also got bruises, nadapa, natamaan ang mukha, ang braso. I watched their games with a whole gamut of remedies in my bag. Merong akong baong alcohol, band-aid, face towel, antibiotic cream. He stopped playing because some of his teammates started bullying him. He lost his interest and joined the swimming team and chess varsity. Siguro if someone punched him intentionally I would dart across the basketball court and pinch the boy. Stage mom, that’s me.
Keeping your cool while your opponents use every part of their body to thwart your defense or offense is common strategy and has become a part of this ultra physical sport. Faking getting hurt is also another drama.
The heated games between the Golden State Warriors vs Cavaliers were also full of body contacts, unintentional and mostly intentional. There was one instance when Thompson slapped another guy. There were also lots of trash talking, all the time.
Relax and be cool. If you don’t want to get hit, switch sports. Golf, tennis, chess. But if you are a volcano, then any kind of sport can also make you flare up. Even in golf people get into fights. So please take a cold shower and be cool.
The Australians could have used restraint and so were the Gilas guys. Every player who punched and kicked has his own justification.
As host country, I think our patience should be longer. Mas mahaba ang pasensya at ang pang-unawa dapat natin. We should be more tolerant of foreign players’ antics, quirks, biases, or preconceived notions of who we Filipinos are or what we are. Let them be. We are the host country.
To our guests, you are most welcome to our country but it’s good to use a sprinkle of respect for our sensitivity. Be nice.
Oh by the way, Edmund also broke two fingers, one from each hand.
Peace guys.
