Peter Miller, a.k.a. ‘The Cricket Geek’, extracts the best cricket quotes, pics and videos in the first of our weekly social media round-ups. Find out who was the butt of all jokes and how WCM’s Phil Walker ignited an Ashes Twitter storm.

Four weeks ago, Jonny Bairstow met Australia’s new opening batsman Cameron Bancroft in a bar in Perth. Bairstow greeted him with a headbutt. It has been described as having “no malice” by Trevor Bayliss. Bancroft himself said that the whole thing was “really weird”. Too right!

Bancroft helped Australia go 1-0 up in the Ashes with a very well made 82 not out, celebrating with one of the most bizarre press conferences you’ll ever see. Asked to describe his experience with Bairstow in detail, you could see just how amusing he found the whole circus.

The best moment was when Bancroft confirmed that he had the “heaviest head in the Western Australia dressing room”. Yes, it has been measured.

This headbutt-related nonsense was manna for the assembled media. Australian journalist Ben Horne reported that the incident was being discussed on the field, with the stump mic picking up David Warner saying: “You shouldn’t headbutt our mates.”

The Australians found it all very funny.

Stokes gets on a plane

In and amongst the headbutt revelations, England lost the first Test of the series, which made the English cricketing public further mourn the non-availability of Ben Stokes.

So, when Wisden Cricket Monthly editor-in-chief, Phil Walker, reported that Stokes was at Heathrow Airport, it sparked a Twitter storm.

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Cricket journo Vithushan Ehantharajah then started working out which plane he might be getting on.

It turned out that Stokes was heading to New Zealand to sign-up for a stint in domestic cricket in New Zealand. Ehantharajah was not to be deterred, however; he found a way to get Stokes to Oz.

Hats off to The Sun for this brilliant Samuel L. Jackson-inspired headline.


Instagram post of the week

Chris Gayle. Really good at cricket; even better at Instagram.

@ultracarnival #TBT

A post shared by KingGayle ? (@chrisgayle333) on

YouTube video of the week

Check out this RIDDUCATCH from Ahmad Shahzad for the Lahore Blues in a recent match in Pakistan.

Quote of the week

“I was expecting a handshake” – Cameron Bancroft