Tub thumping

When cricketers get wet and wild

Deepti Unni  |  January 22, 2023

A bird in the bath: Fred Trueman soaks in his record

A bird in the bath: Fred Trueman soaks in his record © Getty Images

What's better than a long, hot soak in the tub after a day out in the field? Fred Trueman in the photo above celebrated becoming the first cricketer to 300 wickets in 1964 by letting it all marinate in a bathtub in the pavilion at The Oval. That's a luxury most players aren't privy to today - the most you're getting after a tough game is a short dunking in an ice bath. Just ask poor, Geraint Jones who had to make do with a plastic drum.

Uncomfortably numb: Jones can't find his feet

Uncomfortably numb: Jones can't find his feet © Getty Images

You've heard of dumpster fires; now let Ricky Ponting introduce you to dumpster ice. After his 142 not out against Pakistan on the first day of the second Test in Sharjah during a heat wave in 2002, the team had to improvise an ice bath.

Bin there, done that: Ponting plays it cool

Bin there, done that: Ponting plays it cool Hamish Blair / © Getty Images

Ice boxes are indispensable in cricket - they can store cold towels, they keep your drinks cool - and parts of your players too.

Indian team physio John Gloster helps Sachin Tendulkar tend to an ankle injury with an ersatz ice bucket

Indian team physio John Gloster helps Sachin Tendulkar tend to an ankle injury with an ersatz ice bucket Deshakalyan Chowdhury / © AFP/Getty Images

Michael Atherton will hope no cricketers had their feet in this ice box before Mike Gatting emptied it over him to celebrate England's victory in the fourth Test of the 1994-95 Ashes.

"This wasn't what I meant when I asked for ice in my beer" Ben Radford / © Allsport/Getty Images

Baths are also a good place to slough off some sadness after a close defeat. Here, Brett Lee and Michael Kasprowicz try to soothe the pain of their two-run loss to England in the second Ashes Test in 2005 with a spa bath.

Hot tub time machine: Lee and Kasprowicz contemplate what could have been

Hot tub time machine: Lee and Kasprowicz contemplate what could have been Hamish Blair / © Getty Images

If someone's affixed wheels on something, there's a 90% chance Andrew Flintoff has taken a spin in it - like he did in inventor Edd China's fully mobile bathroom suite, called Bog Standard, in 2012. The duo were looking to break a Guinness World Record for the fastest motorised bathroom.

Who said Flintoff's career was going down the toilet?

Who said Flintoff's career was going down the toilet? Justin Tallis / © AFP/Getty Images

A bathtub is a luxury not everyone can afford. Sometimes you have to make do with a shower.

Matthew Hoggard has his own personalised bathroom suite

Matthew Hoggard has his own personalised bathroom suite © Getty Images

Some days you're the bather, some other you're the bathee.

England bowler Ken Higgs gives his kids a rinse

England bowler Ken Higgs gives his kids a rinse © Getty Images

Ian Chappell discovered the other great use of a bathtub on tour - to keep your victory drinks cold.

Bath bubbles beat toilet wine anyday

Bath bubbles beat toilet wine anyday Charlie Rey / © Mirrorpix/Getty Images

Deepti Unni is an assistant editor at ESPNcricinfo

 

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