Oram and the digital issue

Jacob Oram is seriously considering amputating his finger to play in the World Cup. I suppose its not the worst bargain in the world; after all, we routinely destroy "billions and billions" of brain cells in our youth by guzzling alcohol (some of us still are) as we try for glory in such mundane pursuits as impressing our peers (er, perhaps Oram is trying to do just that) or the opposite sex (well, perhaps Oram is trying to do that as well). The loss of a finger just seems a bit more visible. Would you, for instance, be willing to give up a small toe, if it mean the chance of featuring in a World Cup winning squad? Mountaineers regularly make those sorts of sacrifices (the ones that suffer from frostbite) - of course, they take a chance, here Oram is undergoing the loss up front. There is also the small matter of making a living; in New Zealand's cricketing setup, things are a little more edgy for the professional cricketer, and a man needs to make his money while he can; as that quote from Jone Tawake indicates, the chance that it could affect future selections, loss of form, endorsement income is perhaps too great. It sounds outrageous but when you look at it a bit closely its not so wierd. People make choices and take chances all the time that are a bit out there (look at rock climbers, skydivers, deep-sea divers) - cricketers are not doing anything close to that, but still, one gets the general idea.

Just one question: why do this for a one-day international tournament? (I'm kidding, I guess, but it does bother me a bit).