7 Amazing anecdotes in Cricket

7 Amazing anecdotes in Cricket: Cricket as a game is all about competing in various skill sets and coming out trumps against your opposition. And these skills also include the how vocally adept you are to counter any sledge or provocation by the opposition. Some players just get bogged down by it but others are willing to give it back. There are many instances in Cricket which enhance the game’s humour quotient.

Here we have listed some amazing and funny cricket stories. 7 Amazing anecdotes in Cricket:

1. Allan Border Vs Imran Khan:

During one of his playing days, Imran Khan, the captain of the Pakistan Cricket team met Australian captain Allan Border in an informal meeting in Sydney. During a chat Imran told Allan Border “AB, give me Sunil Gavaskar and B.S. Chandra Shekhar from India, we will beat Australia”. In a shocking reply Allan Border said “Imran, just give me two Umpires from Pakistan and we will beat the whole world. Imran Khan was left speechless.

Later, the furious Imran complained to the Australian board. On pressure from his board, Border tendered apologies to Imran and Pakistan Cricket Board.

2. Steve Waugh Vs Parthiv Patel:

The great Australian batsman Steve Waugh was playing the last test of his illustrious Test career in Sydney. It was the fourth Test in the series between India and Australia. Waugh was waging a great battle to save his country from defeat. The 19-year old Indian wicket keeper Parthiv Patel, just a new entrant into international Cricket, told Steve Waugh from behind the wickets, “Come on Steve, just one more of your popular slog-sweeps before you quit”. Steve Waugh turned back and replied. “Look buddy, show a bit of respect.. you were in nappies when I debuted eighteen years ago.”

Later in the dressing room, the little Parthiv Patel was dressed up as a boy by his teammates, including Sachin Tendulkar, for that unwanted comment against a great player like Steve Waugh.

3. Harold Larwood:

Harold Larwood was seriously fast and he had the ability to terrorize the best in the business but also the ability to terrorize people out of the business. He was a villain in the eyes of the public in Australia, especially after the infamous Adelaide Test ended during the Bodyline series. He went into an Adelaide theater one night and heard a small child saying to her mother, ” Mummy, he doesn’t look like a murderer.” Cricket is only a sport but at times it does rise above its level, both in a positive and in a negative way. This incident is a prime example of the latter.

4. Virender Sehwag Vs Shoaib Akhtar:

During India’s tour to Pakistan in March 2004, Virender Sehwag was on his way to a record-breaking 309 in the first Test. A frustrated Shoaib Akhtar was unable to trouble him at all. So he began to bowl short pitched balls, which Sehwag just ducked under. Exasperated, Shoaib began to suggest Sehwag to hook – with exaggerated miming and gestures. After his third such “suggestion”, Sehwag loudly asked Shoaib – “Tu bowling kar raha hai ya bheekh maang raha hai?” (“Are you bowling or begging?”) The Pakistani fielders broke into laughter, and Shoaib did not offer any more advice.

5. Tom Goddard:

Tom Goddard, of Gloucestershire, once bowled 42 consecutive overs under heat wave conditions. Finally, he complained about his unthinking captain. “Why the hell! doesn’t the bloody bugger take me off?” raved Goddard. At that moment it was gently pointed out to him, by amused team-mates, that skipper Basil Allen had left the field hours earlier. Allen had in fact asked a colleague to lead the side in his absence, the colleague being Goddard himself!!

6. Roy Parks and Mrs. Parks:

The ground, Melbourne. The year, 1920-’21. A certain Mrs. Parks was sitting in the VIP enclosure, placidly knitting away. At one point, she fumbled and dropped her ball of wool. She bent, picked it up, dusted it off, and looked up. And realised that she had missed the entire international career of her husband, Roy Parks! The poor bloke, debuting in that game between England and Australia, was bowled by the only ball he ever faced in international cricket.

7. The First English Streaker:

This man appeared during the Lord’s Test match in 1975. John Arlott was on air. He immortalised the moment: “We’ve got a freaker! Not very shapely… and it’s masculine. And I would think it’s seen the last of its cricket for the day. The police are mustered; so are the cameramen and Greg Chappell. He is being embraced by a blonde policeman and this may be his last public appearance, but what a splendid one. He’s now being marched down in a final exhibition past at least eight thousand people in the Mound Stand, some of whom, perhaps, have never seen anything quite like this before”. His comical description of the incident became a part of cricketing folklore in years to come.