After the West Indies smashed Australia over the fence and out of World T20 contention this week, serial slogger Chris Gayle took to the field and danced the jig he reserves for special occasions.
As his teammates joined him in a fairly aggressive rendition of Gangnam Style, some asked whether it was the done thing to carry on this way.
The Aussies did an unconvincing job of saying they were okay with it. Captain George Bailey went all Yoda on us, saying: “The art of winning is almost as hard as the art of losing, isn’t it?”
Coach Darren Lehmann, while admitting the Windies have a talent for shaking their groove thing, said their style of on-field festivities was “certainly not what we do”. Which even I have to admit is a bit rich coming from the Australian cricket team.
Sure, Gangnam Style is a bit 2012. Yes, it was an in-your-face demonstration of what is basically a happy dance. Yes, Gayle got so excited he fell over. Yes, it was in response to some bad blood between the two sides coming into the game.
And yes, Gayle is so far up himself he tweets his followers when he’s trending anywhere on the planet.
But to suggest a little dance was over the top? When did we become such wowsers?
Still, it does give us the opportunity to look at the various styles of on-field celebrations and revisit some of the more noteworthy.
Payback
Gayle’s performance falls into the Payback category, Gayle in this instance seeking vengeance for James Faulkner’s comments that he didn’t like the West Indies. And there are numerous examples of the Payback.
At the 2000 Olympics, Michael Klim and the boys played air guitar after winning the men’s 4 x 100m relay, in response to Gary Hall Jr’s claim that the USA would smash Australia like guitars.
In the recent Third Test against South Africa, the Australian cricket team came under fire for barking at departing batsman Faf du Plessis. But he had earlier accused us of acting like a pack of dogs. So “woof woof” to you, Faf.
We told you a couple of weeks back how the Arizona Diamondbacks, hosting the Los Angeles Dodgers for last year’s National League West title game, asked the opposing team not to celebrate on the field if they won.
There are two problems with this – that the Diamondbacks were even thinking about losing and that they made such a stupid request. The Dodgers won. And partied in the Diamondbacks’ pool.
The Joy of the Moment
The most spontaneous of victory celebrations. In this category, it’s hard to go past Sally Pearson’s multiple kangaroo hops and excited “Did you see me?” after winning silver at the Beijing Olympics.
Back in 1987, Pat Cash turned Wimbledon protocol on its head by climbing into the stands, at one point hoisted on the shoulders of a priest, to be with his family and team after winning the title.
Jim Courier threw himself into the Yarra River when he won the 1992 Australian Open. The only problem I have with this is that he resurfaced.
The All In
The team version of the Joy of the Moment, you can expect to see a lot of this in the upcoming football World Cup.
With so many bodies coming together in a state of excitement, sometimes the All In becomes the D’oh. One of the best examples of this was the two Scottish rugby players who cracked heads celebrating a win over the Wallabies. Serves them right, really.
The Strip Tease
Next we come to the Strip Tease, the appeal of which really depends on the body doing the disrobing.
Rafael Nadal takes his shirt off on court after every match, win or lose. This is a service to tennis. It is not okay, Novak Djokovic, when you have the body of a plucked chicken. Please don’t do that again.
My favourite Strip Tease was the one performed by John Aloisi after kicking the penalty goal against Uruguay that sent us to the 2006 World Cup after a 32-year absence. This celebration could also be classified as a Joy of the Moment and, when his teammates caught up with him, an All In.
Fortunately, it did not develop into a D’oh.
The Trademark
When a player becomes known for a particular victory celebration, we call this the Trademark.
Tim Cahill has made the boxing kangaroo part of his personal brand, picking a fight with the corner flag every time he scores a goal. He hasn’t lost a round yet.
For an old-fashioned Trademark, check out John Newcombe jumping over the tennis net after each tournament victory. Today’s players don’t do this, partly because of injury concerns and partly because of the dag factor.
I’d like to see someone bring it back. Maybe Lleyton Hewitt, whose “come on!” has become a Trademark not just for him but a number of copycats.
The King of the World
Named after James Cameron’s Oscars acceptance speech, this one practised by those who are their own biggest fans. Tina Arena winning an ARIA award springs to mind.
The only person who ever pulled off a King of the World without looking like a tool was Muhammad Ali. He was, indeed, the greatest.
For mine, the most audacious King of the World was Lance Armstrong holding up seven fingers after ‘winning’ his seventh Tour de France and then lecturing those who doubted his achievements.
“I’m sorry for you,” he said. “I’m sorry that you can’t dream big. I’m sorry you don’t believe in miracles.”
Yeah, we’re sorry too, Lance.
The Smartypants
This move employs a different skill set, usually acrobatic, in the execution of the on-field celebration.
In a 1999 rugby league club game, Anthony Mundine and Nathan Blacklock performed a Dueling Banjos version of the Smartypants, with matching tries and flips.
The Just Yuk
This final style of celebration is favoured by the English cricket team, who peed on the Oval wicket after winning last year’s Ashes series.
Fortunately, we don’t have any video of that.
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