Even though cricket in the early 1970s or 80s didn't see players turn up with unique celebrations, things are changing in modern cricket. Former pacers like Shoaib Akhtar, Brett Lee, and Dale Steyn among others brought the art of celebrating a dismissal into fashion and a lot of present-day cricketers tend to celebrate in style.
Similar scenes are expected to be seen during the entirety of T20 World Cup 2022 as well because players will not shy away from expressing their emotions after on-field accomplishments. It is also true that the fans will miss the iconic celebration of Ravindra Jadeja, Shikhar Dhawan, Chris Gayle, and others in the mega event but there’s still plenty to look forward to.
So, without ado, let’s check out the top 5 bowling celebrations to watch out for in Australia:
5. Ebadot Hossain
The 28-year-old Bangladesh right-arm pacer Ebadot Hossain celebrates with a salute after picking a wicket in any match. The pacer does it to pay a tribute to the Air Force of Bangladesh, which he is still a part of.
In 2019, the pacer revealed how the celebration was never a part of his plans and it was only Mahmudullah Riyad’s idea to bring this into his game. The celebration has become synonymous to Ebadot and is an inseparable part of his brand of cricket regardless of the format.
Now, despite making his international debut in 2019, the speedster has played only three T20Is for the Bangla Tigers thus far. Even though he has been highly expensive, Shakib Al Hasan and co. are likely to back him and play him in the all-important T20 World Cup. So far, Ebadot has picked up six wickets in the shortest format of the game.
4. Tabraiz Shamsi
Tabraiz Shamsi is someone who loves to celebrate in style after picking up a wicket. He is a cricketer, who doesn’t have one definite way of celebrating and has been seen performing magic tricks, wearing a mask and what not. However, his ‘shoe celebration’ is something that has become really popular in the cricketing world.
He often performs the celebration after picking up a crucial wicket for South Africa and for the franchises he plays for. The left-arm wrist-spinner has clarified previously that he does it for fun and not to disrespect any cricketer. With South Africa set to challenge India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and two other nations in the Super 12 of the competition, we can expect a lot of this celebration from Shamsi.
Meanwhile, The 32-year-old has played 57 T20Is for the Proteas and picked up 69 wickets at an economy of 7.15 thus far.
3. Sheldon Cottrell
The Caribbean cricketers are always in a mood to celebrate and Sheldon Cottrell is no different. Following each of his dismissals, the 33-year-old marches down the pitch and salutes the departing cricketer in order to pay his respect.
Being a soldier of the Jamaica Defense Force (JDF), he practised this move for six long months. He has also been part of deadly battles in the past and lost a lot of his colleagues because of that. Therefore, Cottrell performs it as a ritual after every dismissal.
Coming to his performance now, the speedster will play a massive part for the West Indies in the T20 World Cup. Bowling with the new ball, he’ll have the responsibility to pick early wickets and set the tone for the team. So far, he has played 42 T20Is for the Windies and picked up 50 wickets at an economy of 7.94.
2. Wanindu Hasaranga
The poster boy of Sri Lankan cricket Wanindu Hasaranga imitates his favourite footballer Neymar Jr. every time after grabbing a wicket. He revealed the reason behind his celebration in the Indian Premier League 2022 by saying, "My favourite footballer is Neymar and that is his celebration which I do."
We saw him celebrate the same way in the ongoing T20 World Cup after picking Gerhard Erasmus’ wicket Sri Lanka's first match against Namibia. However, the celebration soon turned bitter as Sri Lanka lost the match by a margin of 55 runs.
Hasaranga will play a massive role in Sri Lanka's T20 World Cup campaign and that goes without saying. The 25-year-old was adjudged the Player of the Tournament in the Asia Cup 2022 and thus has the ability to perform under pressure. In a total of 47 T20Is that he has played for Sri Lanka, the all-rounder has picked up 78 wickets at an excellent economy rate of 6.62 and scored 459 runs.
1. Shaheen Afridi
Shaheen Afridi’s celebration is akin to former Pakistan captain Shahid Afridi’s iconic celebration. The young pacer blows a flying kiss before putting his hands up in the air to celebrate after picking up a wicket.
Even though he’s someone very calm and composed, the celebration is his way to bid goodbye to the batter. Now, this is also something that the legendary Shoaib Akhtar took notice of and criticised the cricketer for doing so. He asked the pacer to at least pick five or six wickets before hitting the celebration as it seems meaningless to him (Shoaib) otherwise.
The 22-year-old didn’t pay much heed to Shoaib's statement and has continued hitting the celebration each time. Now, returning back from injury, Pakistan would hope to see him do it again as the Men in Green eye their second T20 World Cup title. Meanwhile, the speedster has played 40 T20Is for Pakistan and picked up 47 wickets at an economy of 7.75.
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