Nathan Lyon causes delay in Sheffield Shield match after he burns a toast

In a comical turn of events, Australian ace off-spinner, Nathan Lyon confessed that he was the cause of a 30-minute delay in the Sheffield Shield match against Queensland after he burnt his toast. The cooking blunder led to a fire alarm and the game being temporarily halted.

Umpires were forced to suspend play on Wednesday afternoon at Allan Border Field due to a fire alarm that led to the evacuation of the Stuart Law Stand, which houses both teams, the scorers and the media.

“(The toast) popped up first and I wasn’t happy so I put it back down and I got carried away watching the cricket. There’s a first for everything. I was getting a bit bored in the changerooms. Steve Smith already said he’s going to cover it (the fire truck call-out fee),” claimed Nathan Lyon according to cricket.com.au.

Needing just 18 more runs to win, NSW were 4-110, when play was stopped, but the all clear was given to resume the match around 30 minutes later. NSW went on to register a six-wicket win.

New Zealand’s Test against South Africa last March was halted for around 15 minutes when an emergency alarm at Dunedin’s University Oval enforced a full venue evacuation. The fans at the ground were not in any hurry to move along, with the majority only starting to evacuate when several fire engines pulled up outside the venue. The match resumed in a short while.

Before the mishap, Nathan Lyon confirmed he had intended to spread peanut butter on the toast. Play continued for a number of deliveries despite the alarm sounding but once umpires were alerted to the evacuation, players and officials were taken from the field for safety reasons. Perplexed players, among them Test stars Smith, Usman Khawaja and David Warner, looked on and grouped together at the edge of the outfield as two fire trucks arrived at the ground.