'Best thing I did on a cricket field' - Andrew Flintoff recalls his 'Mind the windows' sledge to Tino Best
Even Richie Benaud, who was in the commentary box at that moment, didn't hold back from letting out his dry sense of humour.
Along with being one of the best all-rounders to have braced the sport, England’s Andrew Flintoff was quite a character on and off the field. His altercations on the field are not a secret as sledging and Flintoff go hand in hand.
Among his many on-field sledges, Flintoff called his words to Tino Best at Lord’s ‘possibly the best thing’ he has done on a cricket field. The incident happened in a Test against West Indies in 2004 when a 22-year-old Best was at the crease against Ashley Giles.
Flintoff recalled his famous words to Best while standing at first slip– “Mind the windows”– which even inspired the West Indian to title his autobiography the same. In the video clip of the incident shared by England Cricket on Twitter, Flintoff wrote, “Possibly the best thing I’ve done on a cricket field. Thanks for popping in Tino.”
16 years ago, when Best seemed edgy while facing Giles, Flintoff had a crack at the batsman and mocked his inability to hit sixes. “Mind the windows, Tino!” Flintoff had said, with a big smile on his face.
Flintoff’s words riled up Best and he decided to jump out of the crease to hit a maximum. However, to his disdain, it resulted in a splattered set of stumps off Geraint Jones stumping, followed by Fintoff’s chuckled celebration.
Tino Best also reacted to the sledging incident
Even Richie Benaud, who was commentating at that moment, didn’t hold back from letting out his dry sense of humour. “Ashley has done him now. Whether he outbowled him or outtalked him, I don’t know. The only one [windows] that might get broken is in front of the dressing room as he thinks his way back to the rest of his team,” said Benaud.
Best also reacted to the incident by sharing the clip of his 95-run knock against England in 2012, the then-highest score ever by a No.11 batsman. Best quoted Bob Marley’s “he who laugh last wins” and shared the video of him sitting the six during his stellar knock.
Best, in 2015, had even admitted that he was not embarrassed by the Flintoff incident. “I’m not embarrassed, stuff like that is good for the game. I always thought Ashley Giles was a decent bowler, but he wasn’t spinning the ball that much, so I had a go,” Best had told ESPNCricinfo.
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