What is the most difficult sport to play at a high standard?

[Scaly piscine]

You think that baseball is as difficult as cricket?

They never hit the bleeding ball! Mind numbingly boring sport to watch as well.

Yep, all a baseball has to learn is to throw and have a decent swing (there's no skill in catching a ball with a bucket), the rest is steroids and gymwork.

 

[luckyeddie]

It appears not

I used to be quite good.

 

[luckyeddie]

Not Lawn Darts?

I understand that DD and Harmison have had a game of LAWN DARTS in Ashington today. It could be the end of Radar's tour before it started.

 

[Hanuma]

so which game is it hardest to be one of the best in the world at?

hmmm....well stuff like chess i spose.

but physical sports?

one that combines intense physical and technical discipline...so that would count out more impact games like cricket, sprinting, tennis and american football

soccer, basketball, handball, rugby...that sort of thing.

or perhaps horse/animal oriented stuff...that adds in a totally unique aspect..you have physical demands, technical demands and the demands of controlling a horse too.

 

[Scaly piscine]

so which game is it hardest to be one of the best in the world at?

hmmm....well stuff like chess i spose.

*ahem* Scrabble, of course. Not only do you have to be smart enough to find words you have to learn the words in the first place, employ mathematical skills to weigh up which is the best move, add up the scores correctly, work out the probabilities when there are just a few tiles left in the bag, keep your nerve when the pressure is on and you start doubting yourself and you're running out of time, be mentally strong enough to come back from bad luck or playing a duff word.

 

[Pratters]

But I have played it... I have poor hand-eye coordination, so it's no surprise I am terrible at it. I do think it's good fun though. interesting thing is, my Great-grandfather, grandfather and uncle were all accomplished table tennis players as well as brilliant cricketers. It really helps with the hand-eye coordination. I am better at squash, but I think it's an easy game to play adequately. One of the easiest.

Who are these specially 'great cricketers'. We wouldnt mind knowing a few more great names .

The poor hand-eye co-ordination explains why you find it very difficult as TT is all about hand eye co-ordination.

TT also helps develop a lot of hand-eye co-ordination if you play it a lot if I am not wrong. Which is why I feel I was lucky to have played loads of it when I was small in school and in home.

 

[nick-o]

*ahem* Scrabble, of course. Not only do you have to be smart enough to find words you have to learn the words in the first place, employ mathematical skills to weigh up which is the best move, add up the scores correctly, work out the probabilities when there are just a few tiles left in the bag, keep your nerve when the pressure is on and you start doubting yourself and you're running out of time, be mentally strong enough to come back from bad luck or playing a duff word.

Actually, yawning is meant to be of great therapeutical value, too.

 

[Smudge]

*ahem* Scrabble, of course. Not only do you have to be smart enough to find words you have to learn the words in the first place, employ mathematical skills to weigh up which is the best move, add up the scores correctly, work out the probabilities when there are just a few tiles left in the bag, keep your nerve when the pressure is on and you start doubting yourself and you're running out of time, be mentally strong enough to come back from bad luck or playing a duff word.

Does wonders for your social life too, I'm sure.

 

[Slow Love™]

*ahem* Scrabble, of course. Not only do you have to be smart enough to find words you have to learn the words in the first place, employ mathematical skills to weigh up which is the best move, add up the scores correctly, work out the probabilities when there are just a few tiles left in the bag, keep your nerve when the pressure is on and you start doubting yourself and you're running out of time, be mentally strong enough to come back from bad luck or playing a duff word.

My knees are wobbling...

Actually though, many guys go through all this on a friday night at pubs or clubs on a regular basis, when looking for a companion for the night.

 

[Sir Redman]

Hockey.

No sport I have played comes even close to the level of skill required in hockey. The stick skills of top players are just unbelievable, and the fitness required is immense. Also, drag-flicking would have to be one of the hardest things to do in any sport - only a select few at the top level can score regularly with it.

Cricket is also very difficult to excel in, as is soccer for the sheer numbers of players.

 

[cameeel]

There's a bit of comparing apples and onions going on here.

One, tennis or golf in their usual forms are purely individual sports, whereas a lot of the skill in soccer or rugby is in team coordination and knowing where the other guy will be intuitively. There's no point in being able to send a pinpoint pass if no one's there to receive it.

Two, the time span involved doesn't compare. A footballer may play one or two matches in a week -- say three hours of competitive play in seven days; in a Grand Slam, a tennis player has up to seven matches, maybe three hours each, over two weeks; golfers four rounds of what, five hours each, over four days... How can you compare the stamina required? How can you compare running 100 meters to running a marathon?

Cricket crosses these barriers; it's about individual performances within a team context, played over long sessions; so all the different components of skill, team work and endurance are required.

I imagine if you were to define 'difficult' as the difficulty per individual per minute, then winning an Olympic Gold in the 100 meters would be the most difficult. But Roger Federer needs to do more to be No. 1 in the world over a year...

If you discount individual sports and only include team sports, using 'difficulty per individual per minute' I think soccer wins.

But if you think of difficulty per individual per week, cricket is probably only challenged by baseball, and given that baseballers are rotated between games, cricket wins.

Good points there, though surely you can't compare the stamina required to play golf at an international level compared to rugby league even (which i detest). The more intricate team sports, such as anything but soccer, require a far broader range of skills to succeed at an elite level. So you could argue that it's harder to succeed at say, Rugby U. then cricket, for the simple reason that if you're a good enough batsmen/bowler, and you can field to a sufficient standard, then you can play. But no matter how well you can throw, you won't succeed at Rugby or Footy without a wider skill range.

Having said that, there's a lot less opportunity for someone to represent their country at cricket then Rugby, so cricket would be harder, and besides, i don't like rugby

 

[Chubb]

Who are these specially 'great cricketers'. We wouldnt mind knowing a few more great names .

The poor hand-eye co-ordination explains why you find it very difficult as TT is all about hand eye co-ordination.

TT also helps develop a lot of hand-eye co-ordination if you play it a lot if I am not wrong. Which is why I feel I was lucky to have played loads of it when I was small in school and in home.

Well, I don't mean "great" as in first-class players. My uncle did however play for Essex IIs and England U19s. I mean they are all legends at Hutton Cricket Club in Essex. my uncle holds the essex league record for most runs in a season, as well as cub records for best league bowling figures (9-41) and league highest score (152*). All three were successful captains, my grandfather probably took more wickets for Hutton than anyone else in history, and holds all three fifth team bowling records, bearing in mind that he only started playing for the fifth team at the age of 67. If you look on Hutton CC everyone called Spooner or Wallis is related to me. It's quite something to live up to.

 

[Isolator]

What about boxing/martial arts/other combat stuff? Definitely requires physical ability and not quite brainless, either.

 

[Scaly piscine]

Does wonders for your social life too, I'm sure.

I'm sure you've gone to your nearest retirement home and used Scrabble as 'speed' dating.

 

[Jdz]

Football/Soccer - Seriously, alot of you guys under estimate the talent these guys have, amazing co-ordination and foot skills. I'd like to see you guys flick the ball left then nip it back right, fast enough to catch your opponent off guard... Or something to that extent.

Cricket - It isn't easy facing a 150kph delievery. nuff said.

Also, how is Rugby hard to play, all you need to do is

-Understand the rules
-Be buff or fat.

And then you're all set to play Rugby, run in to the opposition requres real skill.

Oh and Poker, that seems to be a sport, need alot of knowledge to be playing Poker professionaly.

 

[Pratters]

If you look on Hutton CC everyone called Spooner or Wallis is related to me. It's quite something to live up to.

Just use it as a source of inspiration and not as a way of giving you pressure

 

[Langeveldt]

Baseball probably.. (as a batter)

Nothing harder than trying to hit a 98mph fastball with an oversized twig, not to mention 162 games a year, not including postseason, many of them on the road.. They earn my respect and I love the way cricketers think baseball is boring and vice versa.. Maybe they are both boring?

 

[Pedro Delgado]

Baseball probably.. (as a batter)

Nothing harder than trying to hit a 98mph fastball with an oversized twig, not to mention 162 games a year, not including postseason, many of them on the road.. They earn my respect and I love the way cricketers think baseball is boring and vice versa.. Maybe they are both boring?

I think I'd like baseball if I could be bothered to understand it, I've a feeling that yanks would appreciate the noble game if they could be arsed too.

I like Bull Durham, The Babe, Field of Dreams etc so really it is about time I pulled my finger out and embraced the sport. Bit late now as the season has ended.

 

[Beleg]

Yeah... hitting a little lightweight ball around a relatively small table is more physically demanding than batting for four hours

Batting for four hours is nothing compared to playing competative table-tennis for the same duration. There is far more physical work involved, the rest periods are shorter, and your mind has to stay focused ALL the time - you cannot rely on your partner at the other end to provide you with any sort of respite.

I never got as much as a headache in practising cricket for hours under the blazing June afternoon suns of Pakistan. After playing a few good games of table-tennis, I often found it difficult to sit straight.

 

[Scaly piscine]

Baseball probably.. (as a batter)

Nothing harder than trying to hit a 98mph fastball with an oversized twig, not to mention 162 games a year, not including postseason, many of them on the road..

Don't think so, in baseball at every at bat you get at least 3 swings (or you can just bunt) to put the ball in play, if you miss the first straight 90+ mph delivery in cricket you've had it. The fact that you get 162 games shows just how easy the sport is physically... without going into details about the fat 42 year old pitchers.