American T20 World Cup staff give a man a free cricket lesson in New York – but they have no idea he’s one of the game’s greatest bowlers
- Big Apple organizes several matches at the tournament
- The ‘Cricket Bowling Experience’ center is being set up in the city
- The staff teaches beginners the basics of playing in the nets
Cricket great Dale Steyn was embroiled in hilarious scenes as T20 World Cup staff tried to teach him how to bowl at a promotional event in New York this week.
The Big Apple is one of the hosts for the tournament, which will also be played in Dallas, Miami and various venues in the Caribbean.
Steyn – regarded as one of the greatest ever bowlers after taking 439 wickets in his 93-match Test career – is in the US for the World Cup and visited a ‘Cricket Bowling Experience’ promotional center where staff gave him some tips on how to hit the stumps.
Steyn (right) is pictured receiving bowling lessons during his trip to the Big Apple to take part in cricket’s T20 World Cup
After Steyn hit the stumps completely with one delivery, the oblivious ‘Cricket Bowling Experience’ employee corrected him by reminding him that the ball should bounce.
In a video he posted to Instagram, Steyn is first greeted by an employee who admits “I’m not exactly sure about all the rules” before showing him a simple bowling move and saying, “You have to take a step and throw If the ball is out, it will bounce and try to hit the wicket.’
He then completely smashes the stumps with his first ball into the nets, only for another staffer to correct him by saying, “It should have bounced before it hit the ground.”
That prompts a bewildered Steyn to turn to the camera and repeat the advice.
“Be mindful not to bend your elbow; it’s a swinging motion as you move forward,” the staffer continues as he demonstrates how to move his arm and feet during a delivery.
Steyn bowls again, just misses the stumps, but lets the ball bounce in front of the wicket, and the American teacher says ‘very good’.
Steyn is pictured sending in a delivery during what has to be the most unnecessary cricket lesson ever
The South African maestro (pictured playing in Sri Lanka in 2019) is regarded as one of the best ever bowlers in the International Cricket Council and was the International Cricket Council’s No. 1 bowler for a record 263 consecutive weeks.
The all-time South African great just misses the target with two more balls, then shoots with his third ball and gives the camera a double thumbs up.
Cricket is a fringe sport in the US, so it’s no wonder the staff at the nets had no idea who they were dealing with, but that didn’t stop fans of the sport from having a field day after watching the footage. experience.
“Imagine teaching someone who stayed #1 for six years,” one person wrote.
“She tells John Wick how to use the guns,” another commenter added.
Other responses included: ‘Children teach dad how to make babies’, ‘the lady explains gravity to Newton himself’ and ‘brother adds salt to the sea’.
Some cricket die-hards poked fun at some high-level sarcasm.
“Imagine how many more international Test wickets you would have taken if you had gotten this kind of coaching 10 years ago,” one person wrote.
After watching Steyn’s video, one fan joked that the New York staff was ‘trying to explain gravity to Newton himself’
“This Dale Steyn guy seems to be a fast bowler. If he takes up international cricket, he will definitely perform well,” quipped another.
Steyn was named International Cricket Council Test Player of the Year in 2008 and Wisden’s best world cricketer in 2013.
The speed at which Steyn collected his 439-scap return set him apart from his fast-bowling rivals.
In the history of Test cricket, no bowler who had taken more than 200 wickets could match his strike rate of a wicket per 42.3 deliveries, and he recorded an incredible average of just 16.24 runs per dismissal.
He was the ICC’s No. 1 bowler for a record 263 weeks from 2008 to 2014, and was named the ICC Test Team of the Year from 2008 to 2014 and 2016.