In the darkest days of Australia’s history, when a 25-year-old rubbed a piece of sandpaper against a leather ball, I thought we could never love cricket again. 

Those dark days sure put in perspective previous events like when the Japanese threatened our shores in early 1942.

It’s why we must heap praise on our current side for lifting us out of those dark times by not behaving like awful people all the time.

This is a huge break from the previous tradition, where Australia’s national cricket side behaved like the worst Contiki Tour ever assembled. 

Reaching it ultimate distillation in David Warner, these were groups of people you would move suburbs to avoid.

Now, our current team, led by Captain Tim Paine, are been showered with compliments for displaying sportsmanship and normal human decency.

This is only fair and reiterates my long-held view that your ultimate aim in life should be to follow people who have lowered the bar to the point that not actively going out of your way to be awful gets you held up as some sort of hero.

So, I would like to add my praise to the current team and long may behaving like the vast majority of us do have you talked up as some modern-day saint.

As long as you win, otherwise go back to the old ways.

My new book, A Sporting Chance is our October 29th. You can preorder it now.