New Zealand all-rounder Jimmy Neesham, who remains extremely popular over social media because of his humour and tongue-in-cheek comments, said focussing on the funny side of things helps him overcome difficult situations in life and cricket. Something the world can take a cue from as it continues to fight a strenuous battle against the COVID-19 pandemic.
Since originating in the Chinese city of Wuhan in December last year, the deadly outbreak has globally infected more than 20 lakh people, claiming over one lakh deaths.
Neesham, therefore, stressed upon the role that humour plays in helping people shift their focus away from all the worries that they would be feeling.
“I think it’s probably right out there, the most important one. The sport we play and the career I have had, there’s plenty of downs and you’ve got to see the bright, funny side of it otherwise you’ll just go into a dark hole,” Neesham said on ‘Inside my bubble’ podcast.
"I’m certainly used to tough situations and this is another one. All things pass eventually and we should keep smiling and laughing and we’ll all be in a better place and good to go once we come out the other side," he added.
Black Caps' last international assignment - the Chappell-Hadlee Trophy against Australia in March - was indefinitely postponed after the New Zealand government asked all its citizens to isolate themselves, forcing the national side to immediately fly back.
"We were in Sydney for the ODI series and we joked about what was going on at the airport but the amount that it escalated to in the six-seven days was unbelievable," recalled Neesham.
“We played on Friday and on Saturday we were called for a meeting at two and by three we were on the bus to the airport. It was pretty quick and we were lucky to have reached home."
The first ODI of that series was played behind closed doors in Sydney, which was a unique experience for all the cricketers involved.
"It was bizarre, totally different," said Neesham. "At one point I was at long on and I could hear one security guard talking on his walkie talkie and I could also hear the voice of the other security guard on the other side of the ground. It was very strange."
(Inputs from PTI)
