"Siege mentality is a shared feeling of victimization and defensiveness - a term derived from the actual experience of military defences of real sieges. It is a collective state of mind whereby a group of people believes themselves constantly attacked, oppressed, or isolated in the face of the negative intentions of the rest of the world. Although a group phenomenon, the term describes both the emotions and thoughts of the group as a whole, and as individuals." (Wickepedia)
Despite the difficulties of Chelsea Football Club under his command during the 2015-2016 English Premier League (EPL) season, Jose Mourinho is widely regarded as something of a genius football manager. In a career now over a decade and a half old, he has won accolades and titles aplenty with a number of clubs, including the aforementioned Chelsea, Real Madrid, Inter Milan, and Porto.
Totally dedicated to winning, Mourinho is a master tactician who spares no effort in gaining every advantage for his team. And one ploy he has frequently utilized over the years is that of a manufactured siege mentality.
Almost every post-match media appearance is a recitation of complaints - some plainly mentioned, others deftly hinted at - against him and his team. If everything he said were to be believed, then Chelsea, most recently, but all the teams he has managed since adopting this ruse, are always being picked on by everyone else.
Referees make unfair calls against his team; the football authorities punish them more severely; media target them. There are dangers lurking in every dark place and enemies around every corner. Mourinho makes sure to remain in a state of conflict with all, including the managers of opposing teams.
Since he and his men are at war with everyone, there's only "us and them" - Mourinho and his band against the entire world. And the only way to successfully take on the world is to band together; support each another. Each member has to be prepared to sacrifice everything for the greater good of the team. "All for one," as the Musketeers used to say, "and one for all".
It should be clear to the millions who followed the just concluded ICC World T20, 2016 that the eventual winners, the West Indies, were operating under some kind of a siege mentality. Wisely, it appears, the players and coaches from the Caribbean held everything inside before unloading right after their exciting and rather unexpected semi-final win against hosts and tournament favourites, India.
English commentator Mark Nicholas' pejorative comment that the West Indies were "short on brains" was answered by an angry Darren Sammy: "How could you describe people that way? Everyone's got brains, even animals." And by coach Phil Simmons, in a sarcastic tweet: "Awesome display by this group of men without brains, imagine if we had some." "Take that," said bowling coach Curtly Ambrose to the cricket experts who gave them no chance.
The Caribbean side vented even more after their thunderous win against England that earned them the T20 World Cup Trophy. At the presentation ceremony, an emotional Sammy mentioned a number of hardships the team, the coach and the manager faced, including a level of disrespect that he said came from their own cricket board.
"All these things before the tournament brought this team together," the captain reported. "The ability to put all that adversity aside and to come out and play the type of cricket in front of such passionate fans... it's just tremendous."
Further evidence of a siege mentality came from Dwayne Bravo when he spoke toStar Sports. "We know that they (the board) did not want or believe that we could win this tournament. It was basically us against them. Even the BCCI does more for us."
Marlon Samuels is certainly a sensitive soul. In addition to all the adversaries and naysayers his team faced, he had one that was all his own. Australian legend, Shane Warne apparently directed a few uncomplimentary comments about Samuels' batting on air that highly displeased the batsman. Obviously, preening from his amazing and priceless Man-of-the-Match 85, he went hard at the former spinner. "Shane Warne has been talking continuously and all I want to say is this (The man-of-the-match award) is for Shane Warne. I answer with the bat and not the mic." Later, the Jamaican had even harsher words for the Australian.
Clearly, the West Indies unit felt they were under fire from all sides. Pundits in the media and even their own board were skeptical of their ability and doubted their worth. Real or imagined, these slights had the effect of rousing the team. Far from breaking them down, the difficulties galvanized their resolve and bolstered their spirits. We all saw it in the fearless way they played and in the exuberance and the relentlessness of their celebrations.
Everybody was on board. Nobody, save Samuel Badree perhaps, dominated throughout. Different players answered the call on different occasions. The mighty Chris Gayle contributed significantly with the bat only once. But that didn't matter in the end because others, like the unheralded Andre Fletcher and Johnson Charles, made telling contributions when it mattered. Lendl Simmons, left out at first because of injury, came in for an injured Fletcher and starred in the semi-final a few days after his arrival. His 51-ball 82* was one of the knocks of the tournament.
This T20 World Cup title, along with the triumphs of the Women's team and U19 team, are all signs that cricket is not yet dead in the Caribbean. There is much work still to do, and the authorities had better get busy doing it, but there will and should be rejoicing for a season. Despite all the troubles the players have stood tall. They deserve a lot of praise and respect.
In Mourinho's case, a siege mentality is part of a carefully contemplated scheme designed to inspire his team to titles and trophies. In the case of the West Indies' 2016 T20 World Cup winning team, a multiplicity of factors conspired inadvertently to bring about a similar result. It's probably not tenable nor desirable over a long period. And Mourniho's famous third year implosions might be evidence of that. But, here it worked for the West Indies and helped them to a much needed world title.
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