Be it Kane Williamson in 2019 or Lewis Hamilton in 2021, there is nothing much to choose between the characters of the New Zealand cricketer and British racing driver respectively in almost similar situations. They both showed a lot of grace and humility in accepting a tough-to-accept outcome in unfortunate scenarios. If the Kiwis were denied their first glory in the international arena in 2019 then the Briton controversially lost his record-breaking eighth title. However, in both cases, there were no bad temper moments or behavior demeaning the spirit of the games.
Now coming to the Abu Dhabi finale on December 12 the wait to crown the championship winner ended only on the final lap of the Grand Prix. Max Verstappen became Formula One champion in a controversial manner when the Dutch pipped the seven-time Hamilton to the post in the final lap following a late safety car intervention. The Englishman was ruling the roost in the Final in the UAE capital city when a crash involving Nicholas Latifi in the Williams resulted in a Safety Car norm (minimise the speed of the cars on the track to enable the worker to clean up the debris or crashed cars) which turned the outcome of the race on its head. In the end, Safety Car-enabled fresh tyres aided Verstappen to upstage Hamilton and pocket the title in a riveting and dramatic finish.
“My goal when I was little was to be a Formula One driver. You dream of podiums and victories. But when they tell you that you are world champion, it’s incredible,” an elated Verstappen said after the race.
However, the demeanor of Hamilton ultimately won several hearts, “Congratulations to Max and his team. We gave it everything this last part of the season and never gave up, that’s the most important thing,” said the seven-time winner post the pulsating race.
Resultantly, Verstappen will go down in record books as the first Dutch to clinch the F1 title. However, beyond the record books and all academic purposes, Hamilton will be remembered for the manner in which he embraced the result. This episode in Abu Dhabi or the one in England in 2019 is a pertinent lesson in gamesmanship and budding sportspersons across the world would do well by taking a leaf out of either of these two instances. So, whether the 2019 World Cup final or the 2021 Grand Prix final, the real winner on both occasions has been the game itself.
