The most recent example that inspired this post comes from the 2009 Wimbledon Semi’s.
Roger Federer versus Tommy Haas.
Let me set the stage:
Roger Federer is up two sets already and the third set is well underway. Haas and Federer are both dominating on their respective service games. Neither player has lost a point in the first four games. It seems we’re headed to another tiebreak to liken the first set.
All of a sudden, Simon Reed, the commentator says something like this on Tommy's serve,“Here at four games apiece, neither player has lost a point on serve. The level of play is spectacular”.
At the time it sounded like English, but I now hear the Harry Potter-esque spell casting tone within his words.
Literally at that moment, Tommy Haas double faults losing the first point on serve in the set. He goes on to be wiped away and lose the match in three sets.
(Big ups either way Tommy. Well played..well played)
Coincidence…maybe.
But try this one on for size.
NBA playoffs...If I recall correctly*, it was two years ago. Ray Allen and the eventual NBA champion Celtics of that season are in a semi-intense playoff bout with some team that I can’t recall at the moment.
Ray Allen, a career 90% free throw shooter is on a spectacular streak from the stripe. I think he had made something like 48 in a row. Allen drives to the basket, gets fouled and knocks down two more to stretch the streak to 50, which apparently put him a couple free throws away from breaking a personal record.
A perfect opportunity for the mystical tongue of the commentator to strike.
Allen again forges his way to the basket and gets fouled a few plays later and as he steps to the line, the commentator readys himself. The blurb displays on the television set, and is accompanied by the commentators impacting words.
“Ray Allen on his last trip tied a person best with 50 consecutive free throws made from the stripe. He’s converted on all 8 of his free throws thus far today”
Allen goes through his ritual, stares down the basket, and.. CLANK! .. off the back iron.
“Until that one”...the commentator utters unforgivingly.
You may say that it’s only mere coincidence that these things happen. And I agree, these two examples aren’t nearly enough evidence for the absurd theory you feel I may be hinting at. My recommendation though is to watch a bit of sports and look for the openings where jinxing can occur. It happens a lot more frequently than you would expect.
Nothing too drastic here. Just an observation. ;)
*The numbers in this anecdote are not entirely accurate but the reality of this story and its acumen remain intact.
You may recall I'm a big sports fan and this seems to happen quite often. May me remember, however, not to fall prey to the confirmation bias; it may occur with even greater frequency that a commentator's citing of a potential statistic leads to the predicted outcome. Let's look for those too.
ReplyDeleteOh yea. You hit it right on the head. Out of curiousity, if you're following tennis at all, who are you rooting for in tomorrows championship. Roddick or Federer?
ReplyDelete