‘How does that happen?’: Beer snake guy divides cricket world
The first day of the second Test in Adelaide has had it all in the most bizarre way, including the most Aussie interruption of all-time.
The first day of the second Test in Adelaide has had nearly everything, including the most Aussie of interruptions ever seen at the cricket.
On a day where there was a wicket with the first ball of the game, India was bowled out for 180 and Australia’s under-fire batters largely survived under the bright lights of the day/night Test, it’ll be a day that might be remembered more for the interruptions.
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About an hour before the end of play, the Adelaide Oval lights went out in bizarre scenes, leading to South Australian minister for Infrastructure, Transport, Energy and Mining Tom Koutsantonis tweeting: “I can confirm there was no lack of power supply or availability in South Australia. Whatever caused the light towers at Adelaide Oval to turn off was not related to a lack of power supply from the Grid.”
The commentators had a field day.
“Someone’s fallen asleep!” Fox Cricket commentator Harsha Bhogle laughed as the ground was plunged into darkness.
“They’ve run out of electricity in Adelaide; it was pretty hot today,” Mark Waugh responded.
“I don’t know if those around South Australia need to turn the air conditioners off, or stop running the kettle - but hopefully we’re okay from here on in,” Mark Howard said.
“Someone hasn’t paid their bills here,” David Warner joked.
But it wasn’t the end of the drama as play was stopped again in the 25th over.
Marnus Labuschagne was surviving on 13 off 39 balls when he was forced to pull away while facing the fifth ball of Mohammad Siraj’s over when a punter ran across the sight screen with an admittedly impressive beer snake, making the dash in his thongs.
While Siraj wasn’t happy, pegging the ball at the stumps as he was fired up, Labuschagne and the commentators saw the funny side of the Aussiest of interruptions.
“There’s a chap running behind the sight screen with a fairly elaborate set up,” Mark Howard said as the man was shown on screen.
“He’s had a good day,” former England captain Michael Vaughan laughed, eventually estimating it was “450 plastic cups”.
Howard continued: “He hasn’t realised that he’s entered stage right at exactly the wrong time. C’mon mate, it’s the cricket.”
On Channel 7, they were a bit more serious about how the drama unfolded.
“Seriously how does that happen?” James Brayshaw said in commentary. “How aren’t there security people stopping that?”
Greg Blewett added: “Siraj, not happy. You don’t often see a fast bowler when he gets stopped just about before he releases the ball.”
Fans were equally divided.
CODE Sports’ Adam Peacock tweeted simply: “Iconic.”
Sports reporter Quentin Hull said: “A rouge punter with a beer snake and no feel for cricket sparks tension in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy. This is ‘Straya.”
Others were split between blasting the beer snake guy and Siraj for his over-reaction, particularly when his teammate Nitish Kumar Reddy pulled out of a ball as Pat Cummins was in his bowling action earlier in the day.
Labuschagne then made the most of Siraj’s frustrations, cutting the next ball for four.
Vaughan said the beer snake man might need to make an appearance again tomorrow because “it’s the best shot he’s played all series”.
If that wasn’t going to rile up Siraj even more, he finished with a wayward bouncer.
And even though it most definitely wasn’t, the speed gun recorded it at 181.6km/h.
For the record, the fastest ball ever recorded in the history of cricket was from former Pakistan quick Shoaib Akhtar, who bowled a 161.3km/h ball.
It wasn’t the only bizarre moment of the day with Ravichandran Ashwin making one of the worst DRS reviews seen in Test cricket.
Stay weird cricket.
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After a dramatic start to the day where the Aussies tore through the Indian top order before a rearguard action from the tail got the visitors to 180, there would be plenty of questions asked of the Aussie batters under lights.
But despite losing Usman Khawaja for 13, Nathan McSweeney battled to 38 not out at stumps alongside Labuschagne on 20 not out.
Australia finished the day at 1/86, still 94 runs behind on the first innings.
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