The 10 Most Shocking Ashes Moments

The 2013 Ashes got off to a flyer with England winning an action-packed first Test by just 14 runs.

With more twists and turns than a Graeme Swann fizzer, the historic rivalry between the hosts and Australia resumed with it's usual mix of drama, controversy and tension.

Although Alastair Cook's men managed to get over the line on the final day, the shocking debut performance by Australian 19-year-old Ashton Agar, who cracked a record-breaking 98 runs in his team's first innings, will live long in the memory.

With the appetite whetted for the plethora of matches these sides will contest over the next few months, here's a look at 10 of the other most shocking moments in the rich history of The Ashes.

Oh Bodyline…Bodyline for You…

When England visited Australia to contest the 1932-33 Ashes series, they came up with an ingenious scheme to stop Don Bradman and Co.

Although their Oxford University-educated captain Douglas Jardine may have put it more eloquently, the basic plan was to knock the Aussies' blocks off.

For five Tests, the English bowlers, led by Harold Larwood, carried out the instructions and peppered the hosts with a relentless barrage of short-pitch hostile bowling which, in those pre-helmet days of gentlemanly cricket, upset the applecart, to put it mildly.

After numerous hits, bruises and Baggy Green blood has been split on the wicket, the Australian public became so outraged that diplomatic relations between the two countries became strained.

England went on to win the series 4-1, but an eloquent quote from battered Aussie batsman Bill Woodfull summed up the controversial era, as ESPN reports:

 “There are two teams out there; one is trying to play cricket and the other is not”

The rules were changed soon after, but to this day, the Bodyline Series remains one of the most significant events in the history of cricket.

To Bet or Not to Bet, That is the Question

The famous "Botham’s Test," which took place at Headingley in the 1981 Ashes, is regarded as one of the greatest games in cricketing history.

England, on the back of a blistering all-round performance from Ian Botham, known affectionately as "Beefy," came back from the dead to win and simultaneously change the momentum of the entire series.

But a couple of days after the match had finished, a story emerged that two of Australia’s star players, Dennis Lillee and Rod Marsh, had backed England, during the game, to triumph at odds of 500/1 (a 0.1996 percent chance).

The duo in question and the Australian team rejected the charges, but according to Rob Steen of The Guardian, a quote from Aussie captain Kim Hughes appeared to contradict the official line:

 "Two of the lads gambled - not because they want to bet against their team but because the odds were too good to miss"

Lillee and Marsh continued to deny the event for the rest of their playing careers, and it wasn’t until Lillee released his autobiography in 2003 that he admitted the incident had taken place.

Ball of the Century

In the second Test of the 1993 Ashes series, portly strokemaker Mike Gatting was preparing to face his first delivery from debutante Shane Warne, probably wondering what beach this brash, bleached-blonde surfer had just walked off.

Seconds later, he was walking back to the pavilion with a bemused look on his face, wondering what was for lunch, as his broken bails lay scattered behind him on the Old Trafford wicket.

The "ball of the century" as it has since been christened, drifted in the air, pitched outside leg and turned almost square to bypass the English batsman’s blade and crash into the stumps.

Welcome to The Ashes, Shane Warne.

The wrist spinner went on to take 708 Test wickets, 195 of which were against England, and is widely regarded as the greatest slow bowler the game has ever produced.

Here I Come to Save the Day, Thank Goodness Super-Sub Is on His Way

The classic 2005 Ashes series was on a knife-edge when Damien Martyn called the well-set Ricky Ponting through for a tight single at Trent Bridge.

The Tasmanian may not have wondered who the unfamiliar-looking spritely fielder who swooped to pick up the ball and throw down his stumps in the split second it took for him to get run out was.

But the Australian captain's red-mist descended on his way back to the dressing room, when he realised he had been run out by England’s substitute fielder.

Despite being aware of the constant TV camera in his face, Ponting unleashed an expletive-laden rant in the direction of the opponents' dressing room as his fury about England’s questionable use of highly skilled reserves erupted.

He may have had a point, but the heroic fielder in question, Gary Pratt, became an overnight cult hero and now has his own niche in Ashes folklore.

Donald’s Duck

The news that the final game of the 1948 Series would be Sir Don Bradman's final ever Test Match guaranteed a full house at the Oval, and a standing ovation accompanied the Aussie great to the wicket.

Needing just four runs to take a Test batting average of over a hundred with him into retirement seemed little problem for a man who had notched 19 Ashes Centuries.

Even England’s fielders greeted his arrival with a round of three cheers as the stage was set for one more batting masterclass.

But, overwhelmed by the adulation he received and emotion of the occasion, Bradman allowed wrist spinner Eric Hollies' second delivery to pass between his bat and pad and bowl him for a duck.

The stunned crowd rose to give their second standing ovation in as many minutes as "The Don" sheepishly walked off a Test Match field of play for the last time, saddled with the agony of a lifetime average of 99.94.

Boon Clocks Up First 50 of the 1989 Ashes

When people talk about almost unbreakable cricket records, Sir Jack Hobbs' 61,760 career runs, Sachin Tendulkar's century of international centuries or even Muttiah Muralitharan's staggering haul of 800 Test wickets spring to mind.

However, perhaps the most incredible of all landmarks reached by a cricketer belongs to David Boon.

As reported by Peter Lalor in The Weekend Australian Magazine, en route to contest the 1989 Ashes, the moustache-bearing left-handed batsman consumed 52 cans of beer on the flight from Sydney to London via Singapore.

To put that into context, he sank approximately 33 pints in approximately 23 airborne hours and still managed to walk off the flight unaided.

Even more impressively, once the inevitable hangover had faded, he averaged 55 and helped Australia to win the series 4-0.

Since that incredible feet of mile-high binge drinking, numerous other attempts have been made but all, perhaps quite sensibly, have fallen short of this mammoth total.

Alderman Lays Down the Law to Pitch Invader

When pitch invaders interrupted the dull First Test of the 1982-83 Ashes series in Perth, one young chap, no doubt emboldened by a few cans of Emu Bitter, decided to clip Terry Alderman's hat before escaping to the safety of the sands.

As he was running off, probably salivating at the prospect of telling the story for years to come back in his local, imagine his horror when he turned to see the wild-maned Aussie paceman haring after him like a rabid cheetah in pursuit of a young gazelle.

After a brief chase, Alderman brought his prey down with a flying tackle straight out of the AFL manual, and the offender was eventually ejected from the ground.

Unfortunately, the man who captured over 40 wickets on tours of England twice, came off worse in the incident and dislocated his shoulder.

The injury was so severe it kept the Western Australian out of the game for over a year.

Harmison is Wide of the Mark

Imagine the scene. The sun is beaming down on the Gabba in Brisbane, as a sell-out crowd eagerly await the first ball of the 2006-07 Ashes.

Australia’s team, including the likes of Ponting, Warne, Adam Gilchrist and Glenn McGrath, have been licking their lips at the prospect of avenging their 2005 defeat.

England, led by skipper Andrew Flintoff, are injury-ravaged and undercooked. They need to hit the ground running if they are to have any chance in this series.

After winning the toss, the Aussie openers, Matthew Hayden and Justin Langer, march out to bat with steely looks in their eyes and postures of determination.

England’s paceman, Steve Harmison, who claimed 17 scalps in the previous Ashes series, has the honour of bowling the first ball in this one.

The tall fast-bowler strides towards the wicket intending to make a statement of intent.

He delivers the ball, and a bemused Andrew Flintoff catches it at first slip about five yards away from where it should have gone. Laughter can be heard around the ground.

The rest, as they say, is history.

Botham Versus Chappell: Round Two

In the blue corner, patriotic England cricket legend Ian Botham. In the green and gold corner, dyed in the wool Aussie stalwart, Ian Chappell. The venue is an Adelaide car park.

Ladies and gentlemen...let’s…get…ready to rumble.

These cricket gods have been bitter rivals ever since a 1977 altercation in a Melbourne pub turned physical.

Since then, the pair have traded insults and barbed comments but refused to speak to each other directly.

Cue the 2011 Ashes series with both firmly ensconced in media roles. According to Charles Sale of the Daily Mail, after the fourth day of the Adelaide Test Match, they pass each other in the car park. Chappell utters a comment, Beefy retorts, and in a split second it is Queensbury Rules once more.

Fortunately, the 55-year-old and the 67-year-old were separated before blows could be exchanged and hips broken, but it is safe to say the Ashes rivalry runs deep on and off the pitch.

The Sound of Leather on Aluminium

During the 1979 Ashes Test in Perth, when local hero Dennis Lillee walked to the crease, all eyes were on the remarkable bat in his hand.

It was not the finely honed piece of mystical willow lovingly carved by a master craftsman that was the usual weapon of choice for any run-maker worth his salt.

Instead the Aussie legend was carrying an experimental aluminium blade.

As there were no rules stating what bats could and couldn't be made of, the game continued until England Skipper Mike Brearley showed the umpires an object that once was a cricket ball...but now resembled a crushed nectarine.

Angry words were exchanged as Lillee argued his corner and refused to back down.

Eventually at the intervention of Aussie captain Greg Chappell, the Western Australian reluctantly agreed to switch to a more traditional source but not before hurling his aluminium bat angrily towards the pavilion.

After the game, sales of the Lillee special skyrocketed, before the laws of the game were amended, specifying that bats had to be made from wood.