Is there an idiom/phrase similar to "commentator's curse", but with positive connotations?

Question

In sports, we have the term "Commentator's curse",

(humorous) The supposed propensity of a player to blunder after having his/her talents pointed out by the commentator.

[Wiktionary]

Is there a phrase that emphasizes that the sportsperson performed brilliantly soon after the commentator's talk highly about their achievements?

For instance,

a Cricket player hitting a six immediately after the commentator says that he has the highest number of sixes for his team.

Or

a Football (Soccer) player scoring from way outside the D-box just when the commentator says that the player had scored from a similar distance in the previous game.

It might be termed as "pure co-incidence" but I'm just looking for something humorous/ emphatic as "commentator's curse" itself.

Answer 1

In Britain there is a common idiom for such circumstances: as if on cue or right on cue.

A cue is of course a prompt to act, and this phrase means that the actor has acted in time and in agreement with a prompt - except it is used jokingly in situations where the actor could not have been aware of the cue. In other words, the actor has responded appositely to the current context or preceding events without being aware of the significance of their response, just like you describe. It is often used in a sporting context.

The video in this Telegraph article is a brilliant illustration of the usage of the term: Blue whale interrupts BBC presenter right on cue - the timing is perfect.

Just when zoologist and TV presenter Mark Carwardine was bemoaning how hard it was to spot a blue whale, one managed to sneak itself into the shot right on cue

Here's an example from tennis, from the BBC:

Before the contest, I was courtside with BBC Sport's John McEnroe and Sue Barker and there was a huge sense of anticipation.

'Mac' suggested that a standing ovation would be nice and right on cue the crowd rose to their feet to greet Andy, 27, as he entered the arena. I think that definitely helped him to settle down and get into his rhythm so early in the match.

_{Wimbledon 2014: Andy Murray makes perfect start - Tim Henman. 23rd June 2014. Retrieved February 27 2016 from http://www.bbc.com/sport/tennis/27984213.app}

Answer 2

These seem to be instances of the commentator/announcer/sportscaster “calling it {just right}” (in the predicting sense of “call,” as in Babe Ruth’s “called shot”).
(example use of “calling it” from ‘The Baseball Fan's Bucket List: 162 Things You Must Do, See, Get, and ...’ by Robert Santelli, Jenna Santell, via ‘Google Books’)

Since “call” has so many meanings other than “predict” in sports and sports casting, using simply “the commentator’s/sportscaster’s call” would be much too ambiguous and not at all humorous.

However, by adding “astute” (mildly humorous in the right context), I think the “prediction” meaning would be clear enough (or at least close enough for jazz and sports casting) and considering the lack of humility exhibited by some sportscasters here in Virginia, I can easily imagine hearing one of them referring to him/herself (“humbly” in the third person, of course) as follows:

It’s as if Beckham got wind [and/or took heed] of this humble commentator’s astute call.

(example of “astute call” from ‘Mutual Funds: Your Money, Your Choice : Take Control Now and Build Wealth Wisely’ by Charles Parker Jones, via ‘Google Books’)

Call (verb) 9 [intransitive/transitive] to say what you think will happen, for example in politics or business
hard/difficult to call:
"The situation in the East is hard to call."
"It’s very difficult to call the market."

Call (noun) 9 [countable] a guess about what will happen, for example in politics or business “The election looks so close that it’s anybody’s call.”

(definitions of “call” from ‘MacMillan Dictionary’ [American English])

Answer 3

For commentators, this might be "true to form" with the fans "cheering him on", but while emphatic enough, neither of these is humorous. You might try something like "From your mouth to his ears, Jim!" a play on the idiom "From your lips to God's ears".

Obviously, I mean for this to be spoken by a co-commentator.

Answer 4

Prove him right.

He must have heard you.

Following the script.