Ticket to ride

All aboard the team bus

Deepti Unni  |  October 25, 2022

No bus-ness like show bus-ness: the Indian team's victory bus crowdsurfs its way to Wankhede stadium after their 2007 World Cup win

No bus-ness like show bus-ness: the Indian team's victory bus crowdsurfs its way to Wankhede stadium after their 2007 World Cup win Bhaskar Paul / © India Today Group/Getty Images

What has four wheels and cries? The losers' team bus after the World Cup final.

As much time as cricketers spend in planes, trains and assorted automobiles, the team bus probably holds special significance - it carries a nervy bunch of players to the ground, is the venue for post-post-match celebrations, and it's a space for players to bond over victories or heartbreaks and make TikTok videos in.

It's also a good spot for a nap.

Just five more minutes: Ricky Ponting attempts to shed the remnants of his jetlag on a tour to Sri Lanka

Just five more minutes: Ricky Ponting attempts to shed the remnants of his jetlag on a tour to Sri Lanka Hamish Blair / © Getty Images

Not all victory parades come World Cup-size - Gloucestershire's more modest one to celebrate their 1973 Gillette Cup win over Sussex featured much trophy-waving but no adoring crowd, just some mystified high-street shoppers in Bristol.

James Float, Mike Procter, David Shepherd, Tony Brown and Roger Knight (from left) try to drum up some interest in their win

James Float, Mike Procter, David Shepherd, Tony Brown and Roger Knight (from left) try to drum up some interest in their win © PA Photos/Getty Images

Cricket buses are not grimy Greyhound-style public transport. Nothing but the best for these top athletes. County cricketers spend nearly a third of their season in the team bus, travelling from game to game so their buses come kitted out with all the amenities - DVD players, coffee machines and even a little kitchen with ovens.

Still, while luxury is all very well, sometimes you need to get out and soak in some local colour and flavour.

Hot wheels: Graham Thorpe gets the hang of local transport on England's 2000-01 tour of Pakistan

Hot wheels: Graham Thorpe gets the hang of local transport on England's 2000-01 tour of Pakistan Laurence Griffiths / © Allsport/Getty Images

Cricket boards today spare no expense for visiting teams - top-of-the-line hotels, security, private chefs, luxury transport, the works. What did visiting teams in the '80s get? Complimentary passes to hop-on-hop-off buses, take them or leave them.

What's a bigger draw than the 1980 Centenary Test? Free passes for a London open-top double-decker bus ride

What's a bigger draw than the 1980 Centenary Test? Free passes for a London open-top double-decker bus ride © Getty Images

Visuals of a team entering or exiting the bus form the template for tour coverage today, one everyone is familiar with. What does it look like to the players, though?

A forest of cameras greets the England squad as they arrive in Dhaka for a nets session

A forest of cameras greets the England squad as they arrive in Dhaka for a nets session Gareth Copley / © Getty Images

It's also the closest most fans will get to their favourite team.

Flying colours: India fan Sudhir Gautam reminds the Indian team what they're playing for

Flying colours: India fan Sudhir Gautam reminds the Indian team what they're playing for © Getty Images

What's the most efficient way to get a cricket team to bond in the cramped confines of a mini-bus? Don't tell them where they're going.

Meals on wheels:

Meals on wheels: "I thought we were playing England Lions!" Hamish Blair / © Getty Images

Deepti Unni is an assistant editor at ESPNcricinfo

 

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