Contrary to popular belief, cricket did not quite have a pristine past. There are numerous instances of scuffles during matches — at times leading to full-blown riots.
The Richmond Green affair
Fights used to be common in the 17th and 18th centuries, when cricket used to be a betting sport, like horse-racing or cockfighting.
In 1731, the 2nd Duke of Richmond’s side hosted a Thomas Chambers’ XI — teams were often named after owners — in Richmond Green for an amount of 200 guineas.
This, the first cricket match whose scores still survive, ended in a draw. Time ran out when Chambers’ XI needed another “8 to 10 notches” (runs).
Many had bet a lot of money on a result, not a draw. They were furious, and a full-fledged riot broke out. Some Sussex cricketers had their shirts torn off their backs. There was even the threat of a lawsuit.
The Sydney riot
A century and a half later in Sydney, Billy Murdoch and Alec Bannerman of New South Wales were batting against the touring English side, when umpire George Coulthard ruled Murdoch run out.
Coulthard was hired by the English side. This was not unusual — the two teams often provided an umpire each — but Coulthard was from Victoria, arch rivals of New South Wales. Newspaper reports had suggested that he had even bet on an English win.
The crowd, thus, booed him when he ruled Murdoch out. There were rumours of this being instigated by home captain Dave Gregory. At this point, Gregory himself requested touring captain Lord Harris to change the umpire. Harris refused.
All hell broke loose at this point, as a crowd between “a few hundred” and “two thousand” invaded the ground. ‘Monkey’ Hornby of the English side, an amateur boxer, chased one of the invaders. There was a scuffle, and Hornby’s shirt was nearly ripped off.
Harris had to be escorted by Tom Emmett and George Ulyett, each of whom was armed with a stump. It took a few years for Anglo-Australian cricketing relationships to be back where they were.
Snowfall on Gavaskar
At Lord’s in 1971, Farokh Engineer pushed a ball from John Snow to the leg side and called for a single. His young partner Sunil Gavaskar responded. Snow, too, went for the ball, and to quote Gavaskar, “the hefty fast bowler gave me a violent shove.”
The little man fell on the ground. Snow subsequently apologised to him, but he was dropped for the next Test match.
Beaten and run out
The fad of streakers invading Test matches began in the 1970s. At Auckland in 1976/77, one Bruce Macaulay entered the ground and went for Greg Chappell.
Chappell beat him up with his bat, much to the joy of the crowd. It is not clear whether it affected his concentration, but Chappell was run out not too long afterwards.
Macaulay later sued for assault, but Chappell got away scot-free. Macaulay was himself fined 25 New Zealand dollars for ‘disorderly conduct’.
Colin Croft’s shoulder barge
West Indies’ 1979/80 tour of New Zealand was marred by controversies, mostly involving the tourists’ complaints against the home umpires. During the second Test match, they even refused to take the field after tea.
When Colin Croft bounced at Richard Hadlee, Deryck Murray held the catch and appealed, but umpire Fred Goodall ruled not out. Croft swore at Goodall, bowled a few bouncers, and returned to his mark.
En route to bowl, he rammed into Goodall, football-style.
The Miandad-Dennis saga
Dennis Lillee was bowling to Javed Miandad in the Perth Test match of 1981/82. Miandad flicked the ball and set off for a run, and collided into Lillee en route. Lillee had almost certainly tried to block Miandad deliberately, but the matter seemed to have subsided.
Now, out of nowhere, Lillee kicked an unsuspecting Miandad. As the Pakistan captain rushed at Lillee, brandishing his bat, Lillee prepared for a punch. Thankfully, umpire Tony Crafter prevented things from going downhill.
Lillee was fined 200 Australian dollars.
Hogg throws a punch
Australian fast bowler Rodney Hogg was not on great terms with his captain Kim Hughes. Five years ago, following an argument with the umpire, Hogg had kicked the stumps, and Hughes had sent him off the ground. Hughes and Hogg had to issue an apology.
Now, in 1983/84 in the West Indies, Hogg wanted his own field placements, but Hughes did not agree. It had been a long day, and Hughes’ denial broke the proverbial camel’s back.
Hogg threw a punch at Hughes and, miraculously, got away.
Duleep debacle
West Zone left-arm seamer Rashid Patel was bowling round the wicket to Raman Lamba of the North Zone in the 1990/91 Duleep Trophy final in Jamshedpur.
When Patel bowled close to the ‘danger area’ of the pitch, Lamba protested. Patel responded by deliberately overstepping and bowling a beamer. Lamba gave back as well, albeit verbally.
Now Patel plucked out a stump and sprinted across the pitch to hit Lamba. Ajay Jadeja, Lamba’s opening partner, bore the brunt as well. The crowd pelted stones as well, hurting Vinod Kambli.
Patel was suspended for 13 months, and Lamba for 10 months.
Wessels hits Kapil
After multiple warnings, Kapil Dev ran out Peter Kirsten at the non-striker’s end during the Port Elizabeth ODI of 1992/93. Kirsten created a ruckus before the umpire asked him to leave. He was later fined for dissent.
South Africa captain Kepler Wessels was on strike at that point. Not too long afterwards, Wessels was at the non-striker’s end when Kapil was bowling. As Kapil returned to the mark, Wessels hit him on the leg with his bat.
The matter was raised to match referee Clive Lloyd, but little came out of it. Wessels maintained that it had been an accident.
Inzamam loses it
During a Sahara Cup 1997 match between India and Pakistan, one Shiv Kumar Thind brought a megaphone into the gallery. The crowd had been heckling the cricketers for some time, but Thind was particularly vicious.
He went after cricketers from both sides, but it affected Inzamam-ul-Haq more. He was fielding at deep third, and during a drinks interval, he obtained a bat from the substitute fielder. Tired of being called aaloo, he climbed into the stands, approaching Thind.
Thind threw the megaphone (a useless act), but once Inamam was upon him, he was left “bruised all over”. His shirt was torn.
Inzamam was arrested but released on bail. He was banned for two ODIs.
Harbhajan slaps Sreesanth
Harbhajan Singh slaps S Sreesanth in 2008 IPL.
In the 2008 IPL, Kings XI Punjab beat Mumbai Indians by 66 runs at the Wankhede Stadium. As the cricketers from the two sides passed each other for the usual post-match handshakes, Harbhajan Singh, stand-in captain of Mumbai, unexpectedly slapped S Sreesanth of Punjab.
Sreesanth broke down into tears. Harbhajan did go to the Punjab dressing-room to apologise to Sreesanth. Only later did it transpire that the Mumbai cricketers were not happy with Sreesanth’s celebrations.
Following a full investigation, which involved evidence from all 21 television cameras, the BCCI banned Harbhajan for the rest of the season.
Pollard throws his bat
Fast forward six years at the same venue. As Mitchell Starc of the Royal Challengers Bangalore ran in to bowl, Mumbai batter Kieron Pollard backed away from the crease.
Starc still bowled the ball. An angry Pollard retaliated by hurling his bat at Starc. Thankfully, the bat slipped off his hand, and landed safely.
Discover the latest Business News, Sensex, and Nifty updates. Obtain Personal Finance insights, tax queries, and expert opinions on Moneycontrol or download the Moneycontrol App to stay updated!
