Tom Shows He’s Indeed Moody, Breaks Down On Camera On IPL Exit

Tom Moody is considered a thorough gentleman. He is, has been, and the fact is, shall always remain one. Few people can forget the calmness under pressure and the grace (and decency) with which the mild-mannered Australian conducted himself in his playing days.

You didn’t find him sledging. He did what he was told to do. His cricket may not have had the aesthetic beauty that a Warne or Mark Waugh brought to the game, but he did well enough to cement his own place with sheer hard work and discipline.

There were no enemies of Tom Moody. People admired him then just as well as they do now. So in that sense, it was a bit sad to see the gentleman cricketer break down upon the sight of his beloved SRH’s ouster from the ongoing IPL.

As seen a few hours ago, SRH went down fighting in their battle with Delhi Capitals, who, perhaps surprising hundreds of thousands, have made it to the Playoffs of the 2019 edition.

Moody couldn’t take it. Tears came rolling down the lanky Australian’s cheeks. It was as if a giant was befallen. The image since then has gone on to become perhaps one of the most poignant snapshots of the ongoing IPL, about to reach its final moment with only a couple of games to go.

And that told, it’s worthwhile to visit the former playing days of a respected Australian cricketer, one who played clean and honest cricket and went on to collect 1211 ODI runs, struck 2 Test hundreds, collected 13 fifties and 54 wickets combined (from both formats).

During those halcyon days of the famous 1990s Australian team, Tom Moody was more than just a lanky all-round cricketer in a side that often resembled scholastic, top-notch disciples of the game; cricketers, that for the sheer talent, class, and success resembled students who excelled in the game with Straight-A’s.

He was a graceful all-rounder, someone who could launch into an attack in the middle when it was needed and someone who could take crucial wickets when none were quite able to. That said, post his active role in the Australian team, if there’s something that didn’t quite change about Tom Moody, then it can be said, it’s his gentle nature, something that he carried along off the pitch as well.

Having established his credentials as a talented coach to a team none take lightly in the famous Indian Premier League, Tom Moody’s inherent goodness and amicability have likened him to everyone who’s associated with the noted Sunrisers Hyderabad.

This, it must be reminded, is no ordinary side. It’s a melange of unique and gifted sportsmen, some of the leading cricketers of this current era who find in Tom Moody, a friend, philosopher, and guide: Kane Williamson, Mohammad Nabi, Rashid Khan, Bhuvaneshwar Kumar, Thampi among others.

But that told, it can be said that there’s always a next time. Under the exemplary leadership of Kane Williamson- easily, the best batsman of the world alongside Virat Kohli- the team have only risen from strength to strength and further solidified their cricket in the sport’s most exhilarating format. To that end, they’d know that they can always come back stronger the next year. Chin up Tom Moody sir!