England’s cricketers avoid superstitious foods during Ashes tour
England’s cricketers are steering clear of certain foods during their Ashes tour, with duck firmly off the menu for superstitious players worried about scoring nothing, reports BritPanorama.
The touring squad has also banned anything shaped like a zero, meaning onion rings and Polo mints are off limits throughout the series. This avoidance stems from a belief among players that their dietary choices could impact their performance at the crease.
Former England wicketkeeper Jos Buttler highlighted these peculiar eating habits, noting that stars like captain Ben Stokes and batting maestro Joe Root religiously adhere to the prohibition against eating duck. “It’s given me the heebie-jeebies just thinking about Root having duck in Australia. It won’t happen,” Buttler remarked on the Love Cricket podcast.
Buttler acknowledged the mental impact of such superstitions, stating that while they “obviously make no difference whatsoever,” the psychological weight can be significant. “It just gets so in your head,” he elaborated, revealing that he personally would avoid duck throughout an entire series. His own experience at Lord’s, where he consumed duck and then worried about a subsequent low score, led him to this conclusion.
The first Test kicks off on Friday in Perth, where England hopes to secure its first series triumph in Australia since their victory in 2011. Following a thrilling 2-2 stalemate against Australia in England during 2023, Stokes’s team is determined to break their drought Down Under. The tourists faced considerable challenges during their last Australian tour, suffering a 4-0 defeat and setting an unwanted record of 54 ducks in 2021.
As Mitchell Starc set the tone by bowling Rory Burns for a golden duck with the very first delivery of that series, the current England squad remains resolute in their aim to avoid similar disasters this time around. The interplay of superstition and performance serves as a stark reminder of the mental dimensions of sport, where even the most trivial choices can take on a profound significance under pressure.
