3 freakish off-field incidents where cricketers injured themselves
While injuries are a common feature in cricket or any other sport, there are some strange incidents when cricketers suffered freak injuries.
Take, for instance, Ben Foakes. The England cricketer was in line to play in the upcoming two-Test series against New Zealand starting on June 2. With the first Test being played at the iconic Lord's venue, the 28-year-old must have been looking forward to the match.
However, the wicketkeeper-batter tore his hamstring after slipping on a sock in the dressing room, which could see him miss close to three months of action. Sam Billings is now in line to make an appearance in the upcoming Test series against the Kiwis.
This isn't the first time a cricketer has suffered a bizarre injury off the field. Here are three such freakish off-field incidents where cricketers injured themselves
3- Jason Roy
Incident: Gets hit on the head by his own bat
Playing in a T20 game in 2018 for Surrey, English cricketer Jason Roy couldn't hide his frustration after being dismissed off the first ball by Hampshire's Mujeeb Ur Rahman and threw his bat in anger in the dressing room.
Little did he know that the willow would bounce back and hit him on the head. The bat didn't strike him lightly or graze him; the batsman was seriously injured and went on to miss Surrey's next game against Glamorgan due to a self-inflicted head injury.
Roy was so embarrassed that he had to apologize for his 'stupidity'.
"I am really disappointed to be missing out on tonight’s game. Following my dismissal on Wednesday evening – I threw my bat into the ground purely out of self-frustration. It bounced, hit me, and as a result I sustained the injury. I’m extremely embarrassed and apologetic to my team mates and fans for this moment of stupidity. I want to apologise to Surrey as a club and all the members," Roy said ahead of the game against Glamorgan.
2- Jofra Archer
Incident: Drops his fish tank in a bath tub, injures hand
In a relatively recent incident that took place in January 2021, the English pacer dropped his fish tanker in his bathtub whilst cleaning it, leaving behind fragments of glass embedded in his hands.
Jofra Archer needed a small surgery for the initial wound and later while he was being checked for his recurrent elbow injury, glass fragments were cleaned out of his right middle finger.
Ashley Giles, England's director of cricket, realized how the whole incident sounded like a conspiracy theory but admitted it wasn't.
1- Fred Titmus
Incident: Got his toes chopped off in a speedboat's propeller
The England vice-captain for the 1967-68 tour of the West Indies clearly had one of the most bizarre off-the-field cricket injuries. The England team was in Barbados for the third Test, and Fred Titmus, a competent batsman and an off-spinner, was ruled out of the match after four of his toes were entangled in a speedboat propeller.
On an off day, the English team were enjoying the Caribbean beaches on a boat with some family members also on board. Titmus, along with some other team members, were enjoying the water but the English vice-captain unknowingly got too close to the speed boat's propeller, which saw him lose two toes while two were hanging by the skin.
Titmus, however, made a full recovery after weeks thanks to the help from a Canadian surgeon, and the off-spinner went on to have a fruitful international cricket career.
However, one thing that dismayed Titmus, was the subsequent insurance sum he received from England's insurers, of £98.
"Did not exactly measure up to my loss… £25 a toe did not seem exactly generous," Fred Titmus remarked at the time.