Internet Desk: Jersey numbers do not have a bearing in cricket, but it still generates a lot of interest amongst the fans. Cricketers over the years have spotted many unusual numbers on their jerseys. They associate those numbers with their personal beliefs and likings. Few cricketers love to keep changing their jersey numbers while a few prefers not to have any on their back. Here’s a list of 10 cricketers who had some weird yet interesting jersey numbers.
Virat Kohli #18
The Indian test captain spots jersey number 18 as a mark of tribute for his late father Prem
Kohli who died on December 18, 2006. He was 18 years old when his father left for heavenly abode. He is carrying his father’s dream who has wished his son to play for India one day. Virat has been spotting the number 18 on his jersey since his India U-19 days.
MS Dhoni #7
The Indian ODI captain spots number 7 on the back of his jersey as it is also his favourite number. His birth day and month also happens to be 7 as he was born on July 07. There is another reason why Dhoni spots the number 7 jersey. This jersey number is worn by all the legendary footballers – George Best, Eric Cantona, Cristiano Ronaldo – when they plied their trade with his favourite club Manchester United.
Chris Gayle #333 #175
This is the signature jersey number worn by the swashbuckling Jamaican Chris Gayle. This is the highest individual score by the left hander in a test match against Sri Lanka. He was later seen spotting jersey number 175. He scored the same number of runs in IPL 2013 playing for Royal Challengers Bangalore against Pune Warriors.
Muralitharan #800
The legendary Sri Lankan off- spinner spots the number 800 on the back of his jersey as it is also his test victims. Throughout his career, Muralitharan wore jersey number 8 on the back. But after his retirement, he changed it to 800.
Marlon Samuels #730
The attacking West Indian batsman spots this number which also represents the number of days he was away from the game after being expelled from the sport by the West Indies Cricket board. Samuels first used the numbers on his jersey during the Bangladesh Premier League, for his side Duronto Rajshahi.
Herschelle Gibbs #04 #08
This controversial South African cricketer loves to change his jersey numbers annually. Gibbs has this habbit of changing the numbers after every year. Like in 2004 his jersey number was 04 while in 2008 he was seen spotting jersey number 08.
Virender Sehwag #
The dashing opener has his own unique style, be it his batting or his tweets. Sehwag used to wear jersey number 44 and later changed it to number 46 on being suggested by a numerologist. But upon noticing luck not going in his favour, he decided not to keep any numbers on the back of his jersey.
Morne Morkel #65
The lanky South African bowler Morne Morkel’s number is a reminder of his height, minus one apostrophe, of course. The 6’5 bowler wears jersey number 65.
Gautam Gambhir #5 #14
The Knight Riders captain is seen spotting these two numbers at different stages of his career. Gambhir has his birthday i.e., 14 on the back of his jersey. At times the left hander was also seen spotting jersey number 5 which again is the addition of his birthday numbers.
Hardik Pandya #228
The Indian all-rounder in his debut series was spotted wearing the number 228 on the back of his jersey, which is his highest individual score in a cricket match. He scored 228 runs for his side Baroda in an Under-16 tournament and helped his team chase a score of above 350 from a struggling position of 23/4. Baroda went on to win the match on the basis of first innings lead.