The high holy days and tennis

I was thrilled to hear the news that the Israeli National tennis team has succeeded in reaching the Davis cup semifinals.

"Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called Israel Tennis Association Director-General Moshe Haviv on Saturday and congratulated him on the Israeli national team's historic win over Russia in the Davis Cup quarterfinals. "We are again on the map," the Prime Minister said. "You have filled the nation's heart with pride."

Israel won a place in the Davis Cup semifinals for the first time ever Saturday after completing a stunning victory over tennis giant Russia.
...Israel will play either Germany at home or Spain away in the semifinals, which take place on September 18-20. "
http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1099329.html

"There really couldn't be a more Israeli triumph than the one we witnessed this weekend: two sabras, two immigrants, 10,000 screaming fans and one country thrown into a frenzy in the most extraordinary of circumstances. "

http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1099339.html

I took notice of the fact that the Israeli team will be playing their matches on the weekend of September 18-20, which corresponds to the Jewish holiday of Rosh Hashanah. In my mind, I have already written the article on the day after Israel's victory over the Spanish team which will catapult the team to the finals.

Rosh Hashanah is celebrated on the the first and second days of the month of Tishrei and marks the beginning of the Jewish new year. It is on Rosh Hashanah that the whole world is judged for the coming year. It is a day of solemnity and proclamation of G-d as our one and true King.

This year, however, Rosh Hashanah 5770 made way for the Davis Cup semifinals. A proclamation of G-d as our King was replaced with a proclamation of Israeli tennis players as kings. The wailing sounds of shevarim normally made by the shofar were replaced with the broken sounds of fans, wailing as the team looked perilously close to losing the match.

Instead of the ceremony of Tashlich which involves the casting away of our sins, the tennis players were busy casting away tennis balls that had lost their bounce.

Apples dipped in honey were replaced by bananas dipped in Gatorade, to provide the athletes with the crucial energy needed to sustain the frenetic pace of the grueling match.

The prayer of who shall live and who shall pass away was substituted with who shall win (the Davis Cup) and who shall lose (the Davis cup).

In the end, it was all worth it, as the Israelis rose to the occasion and beat Spain.

Prime Minister Netanyahu called the athletes to congratulate them on their victory. "We are again on the map," the Prime Minister said. "You have filled the nation's heart with pride."

Prime Minister Abu Mazen said that Netanyahu had previously called upon the Palestinians to recognize Israel as a Jewish state. But, since the Israeli athletes had succeeded in putting Israel on the map, Abu Mazen had no problem with allowing all the Israelis to emigrate to Spain, and play in the Davis cup, thereby putting the Jewish state on the map of Spain.

Other world leaders asked the Israeli Prime Minister to clarify his definition of a Jewish state.

"You play tennis with the rest of us on one of the holiest days of the Jewish year. You spend the Sabbath, like the rest of us Gentiles, in a frenzy, urging on your athletes, just like the rest of us non-Jews. What makes you Jewish?" they asked.