Ed Joyce was the victim of arguably the greatest freak dismissal in cricket at Edgbaston, where Sussex were playing Warwickshire in their Division One game.

Joyce, the former England opener, swept left-arm spinner Ant Botha fiercely, forcing Jonathan Trott at forward short-leg to jump and swivel in an attempt to take evasive action. He looked around to see where the ball had gone only to realise it had been hit straight into his trouser pocket. Law 32 says a fielder has fairly completed a catch “if the ball accidentally lodges in his clothing”.

“I’ve been out three times before when it’s got caught in a fielder’s clothing but never when it went straight into his pocket. He turned round to see where the ball had gone and realised it was in his pocket,” Joyce said later.

“I’ve been caught in the folds of a fielder’s shirt and once I hit someone in the chest and it trickled down and was caught between his legs but never before has it gone straight into the pocket.”

There have been a few bizarre dismissals in cricket, a couple of which come instantly to mind. In the 2007 Test series against the West Indies in Manchester, England’s Kevin Pietersen was struck on his helmet, which came off his head and toppled on to the stumps.

Back in 1999, Sachin Tendulkar had been given out leg-before after he ducked into a Glenn McGrath bouncer that bounced less than he expected. The ball had struck him on his shoulder.

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