I’M not a great sports fan – bit of running to keep Barney in trim; used to cycle enthusiastically over mountains, but now it’s just a means of getting from A to B; can’t play tennis to save my life and I’ve never been one for team games. So when my friends told me that on Sunday they would be glued to their TV screens watching the cricket and the tennis, I didn’t really get what they were on about.

I thought no more about it and just got on preparing the Sunday roast. But as my friends messaged me in growing excitement, I was intrigued by their enthusiasm and, to my surprise, found myself drawn into the afternoon’s contests.

Both the cricket and the tennis were nail biting, each went down to the wire. The final tie break; the final ball of the final over. Enough tension and excitement to engage and enthral even sports philistines like myself!

In my mind, England never seem to win – always pipped at the post. Flanders and Swann, put it like this in their fabulous Song of Patriotic Prejudice, which poked irreverent fun at the fact that England’s easily assumed superiority was rarely matched by their international exploits:

And all the world over, each nation’s the same

They’ve simply no notion of playing the game

They argue with umpires, they cheer when they’ve won

And they practice beforehand which ruins the fun!

There is so much in our national life that is divisive at the moment, moments of national excitement, unity and celebration are to be treasured; a rare break in the acrimony, division and falsehoods that have become the fodder of political life and which pollute our news.

And there’s something about sport that unites people; the skill, the sense of occasion, the single mindedness of the professional. The way the crowd erupts in unison in admiration of both players to release the tension was almost as impressive as the game itself!

Last year, by invitation, I attended a show jumping event. I found myself caught up in the moment, in excitement and admiration of the connection between man and beast. Each sport is distinctive; but each has the capacity to unite spectators in admiration and shared emotion.

I also noticed the number of friends that were texting and ‘WhatsApping’ while the games were going on. Having railed in the past against smartphones and the harm their ubiquity does to genuine human interaction, I found myself eating my words. Thanks to my smartphone, I was able to join in two national events, share the tension and excitement with friends with and deliver a Sunday roast almost intact and almost on time.