Roy Gilchrist and Gerry Alexander (West Indies)
Roy Gilchrist (L) and Gerry Alexander (R)
Most cricket spats are little more than macho posturing, involving handbags and, very occasionally, fisticuffs. But things turned a little darker during West Indies’ tour of India in 1958-59, when the terrifying, unhinged fast bowler Gilchrist allegedly pulled a knife on his captain, Alexander. A mutual enmity that had festered all series exploded when Alexander told Gilchrist he was being sent home for persistently bowling beamers against the orders of his captain; it was then that Gilchrist supposedly pulled out a blade. The incident has never been confirmed, but given Gilchrist’s track record, it is not exactly beyond the realms.