Top 5 instances of players reaching the venue after the start of the game

4. Dane Vilas – South Africa vs England, 2016 Johannesburg Test

South Africa were 0-1 down in the 4-match home Test series against England during the 2015-16 season before playing at the Johannesburg’s Wanderers. Ahead of this crucial game, the Proteas had to deal with an injury blow as Quinton de Kock was ruled out of the match.

The wicketkeeper-batsman slipped at home on the eve of the match which hurt his right knee but reported of the pain only on mid-night. His injury was monitored and was declared unfit for the game about an hour before the toss.

They called in Dane Vilas to replace De Kock who was set to keep wickets in the Test. But Vilas was gearing up to play for the Cape Cobras in the Sunfoil Series 4-day match against the Warriors at Port Elizabeth’s St George’s Park. Vilas had to travel more than 1000 km in order to reach Johannesburg. Vilas couldn’t get a flight prior to 8 AM from Port Elizabeth while the match in Johannesburg was scheduled to begin at 10:30 AM local time.

Hence, the South African skipper AB de Villiers was standby to keep wickets in case of the hosts bowling first. Luckily, De Villiers won the toss and elected to bat first which ensured enough time for Vilas to reach the ground. He eventually got to the Wanderers nearly 55 minutes after the scheduled start of the match and South Africa had already played more than 11 overs without losing a wicket by then.

Dane Vilas batted at No.7 position a while after Tea break where he scored 26 off 38 balls before holing out in the bowling of Stuart Broad. South Africa bundled out for 313 despite no individual fifty. England, in reply, scored 313 with the help of a century from Joe Root.

But the home side collapsed to just 83 in the 2nd essay as Stuart Broad bagged five wickets for one run in six overs after lunch on 3rd day. England chased down the target of 74 losing only three wickets to seal a series victory.