Cricket has produced plenty of serious and unforgettable moments but sometimes a wicket comes in a way that leaves everyone on the field laughing and the clips go viral. From batters falling onto their own stumps to completely bizarre run-outs, these dismissals are tough to forget.
Over the years, cricket has seen some of the strangest dismissals which have turned into iconic cricket moments.
5 Funniest Dismissals and Near-Misses in Cricket
Here are five incidents where things went so wrong that even the players could barely believe what had happened.
1. Steve Smith & Wriddhiman Saha
It was a Test match between India and Australia in Ranchi 2017. On the third ball of the 80th over from Ravindra Jadeja, the right-hander edged the ball. It deflected back in between his legs and was stuck there. Indian wicketkeeper Wriddhiman Saha noticed the ball was still in play and attempted to grab it, but Smith was holding it pretty firm between his legs and when he noticed that the keeper was attempting to catch it the Australian skipper went down on the ground trying to get the ball down and Saha fell down with him. In the end Smith did not lose his wicket but this was one of the most funniest incidents.
2. Qatar vs UAE, ACC Men’s Premier Cup 2026
This happened in the ACC Men’s Premier Cup 2026 match between Qatar and UAE. The left arm spinner bowled a length ball which was defended by the batter. Once again the ball was struck inside his pad. The wicket-keeper noticed it but the batter was quick enough to move away. It was a very similar incident to the Saha-Smith one and this video has gone viral on social media.
3. Henry Nicholls via Daryl Mitchell & Jack Leach
This happened in the match between England and New Zealand in Headingley 2022. Leach was the bowler and Nicholls drove it hard down the ground. At the non-striker’s end, Daryl Mitchell tried to get out of the way, but instead the ball smacked into his bat and deflected perfectly to Alex Lees at mid-off. Caught. The bowler looks completely shocked. England captain Stokes was convinced it was out and Nicholls walked off and was dismissed in a bizarre fashion . Leach later admitted“I didn’t even know if that was allowed. It's a stupid game.”
4. Ian Botham’s Leg-Over Hit wicket
This happened during the England vs West Indies match at the Oval back in 1991. Botham tries to hook Ambrose, loses balance, and while trying to step over the stumps he clips the bail with his thigh. He was dismissed hitwicket. This is a famous incident and in the Test Match Special commentary Jonathan Agnew said Botham “just couldn’t quite get his leg over.”
5. Inzamam-ul-Haq falls on his own stumps
This was one of the funniest ways a batter has been dismissed. During the Pakistan and England match at Headingley in 2006. Monty Panesar bowled and Inzamam ul Haq went for a big sweep, misses the ball and loses all balance, and tumbles backwards straight onto the stumps. He was dismissed and hit wicket in one of the funniest ways possible.
