5 most unusual dismissals in cricket history

One of the popular cricket cliches you will ever hear is ‘cricket is a funny game’. Well, funny it most definitely is and examples of this keep cropping up in every other match that is played around the world.There are a number of ways in which a batsman can get out in cricket. While the predominant ones are the batsman being bowled, caught or lbw, there are other rare forms which include them being dismissed hit-wicket, handling the ball, obstructing the field or timed out.There have been a number of instances of the men wielding the bat getting dismissed rather strangely and perhaps funnily, to some extent. Here are 5 of the most unusual dismissals in cricket history:

#1 Timed out due to a delayed flight

Umpire Billy Bowden and Vasbert Drakes

Former West Indies fast bowler Vasbert Drakes found out one of the most unusual ways of getting out in a first-class game in South Africa. Although being timed out is one of the ways of getting dismissed in a cricket match, it is the story behind Drakes’ dismissal which makes it very unusual.

He was due to play for South Africa’s provincial team Border in a match against Freestate in the year 2002. At the time, he was also part of the West Indies squad for the Champions Trophy in Sri Lanka and assumed that he would comfortably reach South Africa before the match began.

However, as luck would have it, Vasbert Drakes’ flight from Colombo got delayed badly and he was unable to make it to the match on Day 1. When the turn came for him to bat, Drakes’ unavailability ensured he was declared timed out.

#2 Hit wicket courtesy of a flying glove

The legendary Alec Bedser

One of the most unusual dismissals in cricket came during a county match between Derbyshire and Surrey in the year 1953. Alan Revill, a Derbyshire batsman, was hit on the hand by a sharp delivery from legendary England and Surrey bowler Alec Bedser.

Such was the impact of the blow that it left Revill wringing his hand in pain. Unfortunately for him, his glove flew off his hand and crashed into the stumps, removing a bail in the process. The batsman was given out hit wicket much to his disappointment, but he had ample opportunity to tender to his hand for sure.

#3 Bowled by a ball which bounced behind the stumps

The unlucky Martin Donnelly

This one, perhaps, would not have been given out in the present day, but it ended up being a dismissal in a county game back in 1948. The unfortunate victim was former New Zealand batsman Martin Donnelly while he was playing for Warwickshire against Middlesex.

Middlesex spinner Jack Young bowled a delivery which hit Donnelly on his foot and looped over the stumps. After bouncing behind the stumps, the ball, somehow, spun backwards and ended up dislodging the bails. The poor batsman, who was batting on 55 at the time, was ruled out for no apparent fault of his.

#4 Dismissed bowled by a bird flying by

John Inverarity was bowled by a combination of Greg Chappell and a swallow

Former Australian player and chief selector John Inverarity was bowled under the strangest of circumstances during a domestic match in Australia. Inverarity, who was playing for Western Australia, was bowled for a duck by South Australia’s Greg Chappell.

The batsman was left dazed at his inability to read the flight of the delivery and started to walk back to the pavilion. However, the umpires called him back after realizing what had happened. The thing was that Chappell’s delivery managed to hit a passing swallow on its course to the striker’s end, causing the ball to get deflected on to the stumps without the batsman having a clue of what happened.

Inverarity went on to add 89 runs to his kitty before finally getting out in a legitimate manner.

#5 Jbw (Jaw before wicket)

David Larter broke the batsman’s jaw, which wa in front of the stumps

There are surely several Sachin Tendulkar fans who have still not got over his infamous ‘shoulder before wicket’ dismissal while facing up to a Glen McGrath delivery back in 1999. Well, something even more unfortunate occurred with former Gloucestershire skipper Tom Pugh during a county encounter against Northamptonshire in 1961.

Pugh was guilty of ducking to a full toss from former England paceman David Larter and the ball smashed into his jaw, apparently breaking it. Even as the batsman was trying to come to terms with his injury, he could see the umpire’s finger go up as he had been caught right in front of the stumps.

This was perhaps the only case in the history of cricket of a batsman being dismissed ‘jaw before wicket’.