The bad boys of sport and our attitudes

[Deleted]

I've been enjoying Nick Kyrgios Wimbledon journey this year. He's an unpredictable player who is as likely to implode as hit a succession of brilliant ground strokes which gives his matches great jeopardy and tension. Yet his behaviour can only be called puerile and unsporting.
This got me thinking about my attitudes to bad behaviour in sport generally. Like many football fans I hate diving and cheating (British football fans tend to be particularly unforgiving of this, other football cultures tend to see it as part of the game). I wonder if I'm more forgiving of bad behavior in individual sports rather than team sports. I think I probably am, but it's difficult to explain this double standard.
Thoughts?

[Reactionary Rage]

With team sports you have to conclude it’s something cynical and pushed my management. With individuals it’s more personal foibles and volatile temperament that is exposed by stress and pressure I guess.

So Uruguay being a group of cynical cheating bastards at football is different to an individual kicking off during an important tennis point.

The thing is, we all have a desire to misbehave sometimes and we are constrained by society’s endless social mores so when you see a sportsman break free from that and rebel - even if they are being a prick - it appeals to us in quite a basic way. You can live a bit vicariously through it.

It’s why I quite liked that side of Luis Suarez’s game. The kind of cunt who just bites people lol

[Deleted]

Yes, I think you've nailed it there D.

[Reactionary Rage]

Mind when Zidane, who wasn’t a dirty player, headbutted the Italian fella?

Be honest, that was awesome right?

[Reactionary Rage]

Cantona kung fu kicking the fan. Legendary moment

[Deleted]

Jul 4, 2022 18:29:33 GMT Reactionary Rage said:

Mind when Zidane, who wasn’t a dirty player, headbutted the Italian fella?

Be honest, that was awesome right?

I never understood why he headbutted him in the chest. Maybe he thought the referee was more likely to let him off!

[Reactionary Rage]

Didn’t he call his mother a whore or summat?

[osgood]

Jul 4, 2022 18:35:12 GMT Reactionary Rage said:

Didn’t he call his mother a whore or summat?

Yep.

And a kick in the balls would have been more appropriate. A serious prick that Materazzi.

[DarknessFish]

I still find it bizarre that Zidane headbutted him for that insult. I mean, it probably cost them the world Cup when another obvious response would've been "no she isn't".

[Reactionary Rage]

Maybe his mother Was a whore and it brought back painful childhood memories.

Yeah, you’d think he would be used to verbal abuse but it was a genuine wtf moment. Pretty bad ass

[Deleted]

How do we feel about 'sledging' then?
Does it still go on in cricket or have they cracked down on it?

[blue]

Lip readers claimed it was "son of a terrorist whore" (Zidane's parents are Algerian). Materazzi said he was calling his sister a whore.

I think Brits can have double standards with this in football, wincing at diving & play acting but letting hard play go by. Many of the cult heroes at clubs have been the ones rushing in studs up and getting physical on the sly. And no-one ever mentions Terry Fenwick's elbow in Maradona's face just before the Hand of God.

[Markus]

I think the level of spoilt brat man child sports stars have risen. The NBA is full of them for example, and football has more and more of them as the years go on.