arbitrary constant

A moving account of the former England opening batsmen, Marcus Trescothick, and his sport and his depression, is covered by this interview and a review of his autobiography.

Typically, you hear a lot about people with depression in the creative arts. I can't remember too many people, though, who are top-level sports people whose depression affects their profession — a result, it is suggested, of the particular pressures associated with the sporting environment:

The sporting world, more than any other, is unsympathetic to those who show signs of weakness or unorthodoxy. Indeed Trescothick, ill-advised and out of control, initially chose to lie about his condition in a TV interview after his return from India rather than admit to any form of mental illness. This makes his subsequent honesty in recounting his depression all the more admirable.

Trescothick — 'Tresco' — had always struck me as an honest and nice man, which made the sheer brutality of his batting all the more exhilarating. It seems, though, that his experience of depression is the defining feature of a talented cricketing life:

His battle with the 'black wings' of depression is the kernel of the book and the account of his illness is far more captivating than any of the cricketing triumphs.

I'm looking forward to reading his autobiography.

Filed in Sport