PERTH, AUSTRALIA - NOVEMBER 12: Cameron Bancroft of Australia looks on while waiting to take to the field during day two of the International Tour match between Australia A and Pakistan at Optus Stadium on November 12, 2019 in Perth, Australia. (Photo by Paul Kane/Getty Images)

Cricket might be called the "gentlemen's game", but it has been anything but at times over the years.

We count down the top 20 most controversial moments in cricket history.

PART 1

Back

10. 'Death of Democracy': Andy Flower and Henry Olonga take a stand (2003)

From 2000 to 2001, Zimbabwe enjoyed its most prolonged period of sustained success. They defeated every Test nation except Australia and were verging on a historical moment, co-hosting the 2003 World Cup with South Africa.

Sadly, Zimbabwean cricket had reached its crevis, and authoritarian President Robert Mugabe had driven the knife deep enough.

During the first World Cup match on home soil, Andy Flower and Henry Olonga condemned their radical government. They wore black armbands against Namibia to mourn the death of democracy and stop the abuse of human rights in Zimbabwe.

The aftermath was significant. Flower and Olonga fled to England, and 14 contracted players walked out in 2004. 

Embed from Getty Images

 

Back