Steven Finn's Christmas Tales: Tears, Redemption, and the Spirit of Cricket
Christmas is a peculiar time for a Test cricketer. While most people are enjoying festive feasts and family gatherings, these athletes are either in the midst of a series or preparing for a Boxing Day Test, a staple of the cricket calendar. The manic schedule means the months blend into one, and eight years of constant travel between March 2010 and November 2017 left Finn feeling disoriented, losing track of days, weeks, and seasons.
"It doesn't feel like Christmas," he reflects. "It's the day before a Test." But here's where it gets controversial: despite going on three Ashes tours, Finn never played a Boxing Day Test. His lowest point came after practice in Australia on Christmas Day 2010, when he was dropped from the team. The tears were barely out of his eyes before the captain, Andrew Strauss, delivered the news to Tim Bresnan, who replaced him.
"I felt like a huge letdown and that I had wasted their time," Finn admits. "Despite going on three Ashes tours, I never played a Boxing Day Test. A career low point." But this is also where his story gets inspiring. In 2015, Finn had a stress fracture to the ball of his foot, but he proved himself fit enough to join the squad in Durban. "It felt like a Christmas present," he says.
"I knew if I was fit I was going to play." And play he did, taking one of his favorite wickets in his career, a lifter to Faf Du Plessis on the fourth evening. "It felt like a degree of redemption for my previous Christmas letdowns," he reflects. But what makes this story even more heartwarming is that Finn had no family traveling with him. He enjoyed Christmas lunch with the other guys in the same boat, then slipped off to his room to relax, hoping to watch his team win the toss and bowl first on a spicy-looking pitch.
"Now, that's a real Christmas present," he says with a smile. And that's the spirit of cricket: a sport that brings people together, even on the most festive of days. So, as you settle down to enjoy your festive period, remember Steven Finn's tales of tears, redemption, and the spirit of cricket. Happy holidays, cricket fans!
