Cricket fans usually witness ugly fights and verbal brawls among cricketers in almost all kinds of tournaments, but when such a thing happens in a Cricket World Cup, it becomes a matter between two countries; their representation on the international level and the spirit of cricket is also questioned. These verbal banters, conflicts, and offensive gestures all add to the dramatic, dynamic, and entertaining sphere of cricket. The purpose of these fights is usually to frustrate and distract the cricketers to impact their performance and chances of winning the game. So, here are the top ten most ugly fights in the history of the Cricket World Cup.
1. Shane Watson Vs. Wahab Riaz
It was the World Cup 2015 when the whole world witnessed an ugly battle between two stunning cricketers, Shane Watson and Wahab Riaz. It was not just a war of words between two cricketers but crossed all boundaries of propriety and decency. Initially, Shane Watson ridiculed Wahab Riaz by asking him if his bat had holes in it. Since Wahab Riaz, being a bowler, could not produce runs in the difficult over of Australian fast bowler Mitchell Starc. As a result, Wahab’s overs against Australia caught everyone’s attention because of the fierceness of his bowling and its potential to harm the batsman physically. Wahab also clapped more than once in front of Watson to cheer his team, and the stare game went on between the two.
2. Shahid Afridi Vs. Sachin Tendulkar
In the 2003 World Cup, Shahid Afridi initiated a one-sided, provoking fight to distract Sachin from his game. That day, Sachin Tendulkar scored 98 runs in 75 balls, and verbal banter remained the only option for Pakistani bowlers to frustrate the cricketers of the Indian team and take their wickets. Virender Sehwag, who was appointed as the runner for Sachin at that time as Sachin was having cramps, mentioned in one of his interviews how Shahid Afridi was constantly abusing Sachin, but he, without paying any attention to his words, continued to bat determinedly.
3. Virat Kohli Vs. Rubel Hossain
The pair of Virat Kohli and Rubel Hossain is famous for their ugly verbal encounters on the field of cricket. Rubel Hossain, addressing this issue in one of his interviews, said that these fights between them are from the times of Under-19. During the 2011 World Cup, Virat Kohli was captured on camera saying offensive words to Rubel, who gestured to throw the ball at him. In the 2015 World Cup, Rubel, in a vengeful manner, celebrated his crucial wicket of Virat Kohli. This incident also reflects the bitterness between these two cricketers.
4. Munaf Patel Vs. Tamim Iqbal
It is incident from the 2007 World Cup when a fight arose between Indian pacer Munaf Patel and Bangladeshi batsman Tamim Iqbal. Munaf Patel, in his over, began to walk on the running pitch to have some fierce words with Tamim Iqbal. Both started having a heated conversation, though Iqbal also passed a smile to the angry bowler. The umpire had to intervene to stop the battle of words and continue the game.
5. Chris Gayle Vs. Mark Waugh
In one of the World Cup series, Chris Gayle and Mark Waugh got involved in a heated conversation on the field. During his over, Chris Gayle began walking behind Waugh to have a word with him, after which he intentionally collided with Waugh to give him a push in an angry gesture. This fight also became the reason for the extra four runs that the Australian team got when Chris Gayle, furiously, threw the ball toward the wicketkeeper at a speed more than required, resulting in a four.
6. Virat Kohli Vs. Shakib Al Hasan
This incident between Virat Kohli and Shakib Al Hasan took place in the 2022 World Cup over an issue related to a wide ball. Virat Kohli was on the strike when Hasan Mahmud delivered his ball; though Kohli hit the ball, he signaled the umpire to consider it a wide one. Umpire Marais Erasmus accordingly found it to be a wide ball. This decision disturbed the Bangladeshi captain, Shakib Al Hasan, and he came storming toward the umpire and Kohli. Three of them got involved in a heated conversation over the declaration of the wide ball.
7. Harbhajan Singh Vs. Mohammad Yousuf
In the 2003 World Cup, a major fight between Harbhajan Singh and Mohammad Yousuf took place, which was not captured on the cameras as it happened during lunchtime in Centurian. Harbhajan Singh was sitting on one of the tables, and Yousuf on the other. Since Harbhajan was not in the team XI that day, Yousuf passed some jokes to him. Gradually, the battle of words turned into a physical fight, in which both fought with forks in their hands.
8. Andrew Flintoff Vs. Yuvraj Singh
No Indian can ever forget the six sixes Yuvraj Singh hit in the over of Stuart Broad in the 2007 T20 World Cup. Only a few know the reason and the motivating force behind these sixes, which were the blazing words of Andrew Flintoff to Yuvraj Singh. Before the over of Stuart Broad, Andrew Flintoff and Yuvraj Singh had an ugly fight with each other where both threatened each other with the possibility of a physical fight. This fight remains unforgettable for both cricketers after that World Cup match.
9. Lahiru Kumara Vs. Liton Das
In the T20 World Cup 2021, Sri Lankan pacer Lahiru Kumara and opening batsman Liton Das of the Bangladesh team engaged in an ugly and explosive fight, after which both were also penalized. The conflict began after the wicket of Liton Das, who was walking off the field when suddenly war words started between the two and forced other cricketers to come in between to put the fight to an end. Eventually, the umpires had to intervene to prevent further escalation in the fighting and continue the match.
10. Venkatesh Prasad Vs. Aamir Sohail
It is incident from the 1996 World Cup when the tensions between India and Pakistan grew as the match became intense with Venkatesh and Sohail’s fight. Aamir Sohail was batting like the savior of the Pakistan team that day, being in good form, but when Prasad came to bowl, things took a different shape. On one of the balls thrown by Prasad, Sohail made a boundary. In celebrating this boundary, Sohail gestured for Prasad to bring the ball back, as he would hit another boundary on the next ball. Proving the proverb right, that on the field of cricket, your actions speak louder than your words, Prasad, on the very next ball, clean bowled Sohail.
