The 2005 Ashes was one of the greatest series ever played, and one of its funniest moments involved a man who wasn't even officially playing. Gary Pratt, a substitute fielder brought on while Simon Jones was off the field receiving treatment, produced a stunning direct-hit throw from cover to run out Ricky Ponting at a crucial moment at Trent Bridge. It was the cricketing equivalent of an understudy stealing the show on opening night.
Ponting was furious — not just at being run out, but at England's perceived overuse of substitute fielders, which Australia believed was a tactical ruse to keep fresh fielders on while bowlers rested off the field. It was a grievance that had been building throughout the series, and Pratt's direct hit was the match that ignited the dynamite.
As Ponting walked off, he completely lost his composure, gesturing angrily at the England dressing room and letting loose with a verbal barrage that would have made a sailor blush. His face turned a shade of red that scientists might describe as "thermonuclear crimson," and his arm-waving was so vigorous it resembled a man trying to land an aircraft in a hurricane. He pointed, he shouted, he remonstrated, and he did it all while walking at the kind of brisk pace that suggested he wanted to get to the dressing room before he said something even more unrepeatable.
The image of Ponting, red-faced and ranting at the balcony while Duncan Fletcher sat there like a sphinx — motionless, expressionless, utterly unperturbed — was comedy gold. Fletcher's blank expression in the face of Ponting's volcanic fury was a masterclass in passive aggression. He might as well have been reading the newspaper.
Pratt, meanwhile, became an overnight celebrity — a county cricketer who was barely known outside Durham suddenly had his name chanted by thousands of fans. He was invited on TV shows, made personal appearances, and became the most famous substitute fielder in cricket history. Ponting later admitted he'd overreacted, but the clip of his tantrum remains an all-time Ashes classic.