5 Instances where a Cricket match was stopped for weird reasons

India got their tour of New Zealand underway at Maclean Park in Napier. The visitors got off to a splendid start and skittled the hosts for a paltry 157. Kuldeep Yadav and Mohammed Shami were the wreckers-in-chief as they bagged four and three wickets respectively.

India got off to a good start and were 41-0 at the dinner break. However, their chase was halted for a strange reason as they came out to bat in the second half. After Ferguson fired a wide down the leg-side in the 11th over, Dhawan complained of the sun and its direct rays causing discomfort in spotting the ball.

The umpires took immediate action and asked the players to accompany them off the field. Play wasn’t resumed until at least half an hour had passed and the sun had set.

Thus, the incident of the players walking off due to ‘too much light’ was quite amusing and surprising. Yet, this wasn’t the first occasion where a cricket match had been stopped for a weird reason.

Hence, through this article, we would take a trip down memory lane and relive some other occasions where cricket fans where left equally bewildered, if not more, at the reason cited for the stoppage in play.

#5 Car halts play in Delhi

A car mysteriously entered the Palam Air Force Ground

In 2017, Delhi were playing Uttar Pradesh in the Ranji Trophy at the Palam Air Force Ground. The match featured the likes of Gautam Gambhir, Ishant Sharma, Rishabh Pant and Suresh Raina. On the 3rd day of the said game, a car mysteriously drove onto the field, escaping all security.

A gate of the stadium was directly connected to the main road and with the appropriate personnel not at their post, the driver was accorded a free run into the ground. The car even circled around the pitch twice before its adventure was cut short.

However, once the car entered, the officials were quick to negate his exit points and later handed over the offender to the police. Though the driver claimed that he panicked and it was an honest mistake, it still represents as one of the most extraordinary reasons for a cricket game being stopped.

#4 Bee attack in Kandy

The cricketers fell flat against the bees

Bees have often been a cause for concern during cricket matches. The said species had once infamously left a few cricketers and officials injured during a game in 1981.

26 years on, the bees decided to play havoc with another cricket game. England was playing Sri Lanka at Kandy and suddenly out of the blue, bees swarmed the stadium. The players were absolutely clueless with regards to the course of action and looked frightened and amazed in equal measure.

However, the umpire used his presence of mind to lay down flat on the ground to save himself from the attack. The players, too, followed suit and lay stomach-first on the field until the threat of the bees had passed.

The play was stopped for a considerable amount of time and only resumed after the umpires deemed it safe for play. Thus, it qualifies as one of the most astounding reasons for a stoppage in play.

#3 Late delivery of food at Bloemfontein

Bloemfontein officials were left with food for thought

Test Cricket made its much-awaited return to Bloemfontein in 2017 when Bangladesh locked horns with South Africa. The wait for Test cricket seemed well worth it as the home side raced off the blocks and put in a strong performance.

However, the Bloemfontein officials embroiled themselves in a rather embarrassing moment before Lunch on Day 1. Lunch was delayed by 10 minutes after the caterers entrusted with bringing food for the Bangladesh contingent failed to turn up on time.

Though, it was later revealed that a wrongly printed menu was the source of the delay, the office-bearers at the Bloemfontein ground hardly covered themselves in glory with this glitch.

Over the years, Test cricket has been stopped for some dubious reasons but the travelling team not being given food on time has to go down as one of the most awkward instances ever.

#2 Burnt gravy at Old Trafford

Old Trafford once witnessed a burnt grave causing commotion

In 2007, Lancashire was playing Kent in an engrossing encounter at Old Trafford in Manchester. However, just as the former was closing in on victory, play was brought to a standstill after fire alarms went off.

The pavilion was completely evacuated and the fire brigade arrived well in time. Though everyone braced themselves for a shocking sight of the pavilion being up in flames, it was a complete anti-climax.

The startling reason for the fire was due to the over-cooking of a certain dish by a few amateur cooks. The cooks contrived to burn it to such an extent that it emitted smoke and snapped the fire alarms into action.

As interesting as cricket is, there have rarely been instances where burnt food has reduced the hopes of play to ashes. Yet, in 2007, it happened.

#1 Nathan Lyon burns a toast

New South Wales were clashing swords with Queensland in the 2017-18 Sheffield Shield at Brisbane. With 18 runs needed by the former for victory, play was brought to a halt due to a spectacular reason.

The fire alarm in the stadium had gone off and the fire trucks had promptly arrived to diffuse the situation. Little did they know though, that the alarm had been set off due to a burnt toast.

The culprit was Nathan Lyon as he over-cooked his toast a touch and the smoke caused the fire alarms to go off. Play was halted for a good 30 minutes and was only started after the authorities gave it the go-ahead.

Lyon has had several batsmen on toast with his bowling. Yet, in the kitchen, he failed to cook the toast to perfection and eventually ensured that play was stopped for an extremely awkward reason.

Hope Lyon doesn’t venture too much into the kitchen in the near future!