Posted on 03/04/2006 3:37:30 PM PST by Mr. Brightside
Bush hit by bouncer and fooled by googly in Pakistan
Sat Mar 4, 12:45 PM ET
ISLAMABAD (Reuters) - After all the security concerns surrounding President George W. Bush's visit to Pakistan on Saturday, he was first hit by a bouncer then fooled by a googly.
It all happened when Bush tried his hand at cricket.
Bush, an avid baseball fan, batted and bowled several times on a practice cricket pitch set up in the grounds of the U.S. embassy in the capital of cricket-mad Pakistan.
Students from the Islamabad College for Boys and the private school Schola Nova, who included girls, looked on.
He got a quick lesson on how to hold the bat from Shaharyar Khan, chairman of the Pakistan Cricket Board.
"He's telling me the difference between baseball and cricket," said Bush, a former owner of a Texas baseball team.
Then the president was coached while batting at the wicket by Salman Butt, a member of Pakistan's cricket team, with Inzamam-ul-Haq, the team captain, nearby to also lend his expertise.
Bush needed some help.
One ball pitched short, a bouncer in cricket terminology, kicked up off the turf to strike the president on the shoulder.
Luckily, he was playing with tennis balls, much softer than rock-hard cricket balls.
Bush was bamboozled again.
"I was fooled by a googly," he joked later at a state dinner on Saturday evening.
The googly is a ball bowled across the batter, but which turns back in towards him after it bounces.
Bush saved the best until last, walloping the ball high into some trees.
"Not bad for a first time," one boy said.
Bush, in Pakistan on the last leg of a tour of South Asia, was modest about his cricket debut.
"Haven't quite got the skills yet," said Bush, the sleeves on his blue shirt rolled up.
Pakistan's most famous-ever cricketer, former captain-turned-politician Imran Khan, spent Saturday confined to his home where authorities detained him to thwart his plan to lead a march to protest against Bush's visit.
U.S. President George W. Bush hits the ball during a cricketing clinic with the Islamabad College for Boys within the grounds of the U.S. Embassy in Islamabad, March 4, 2006. Bush spent some time at batting and bowling in the game of cricket as he wraps up his trip to Afghanistan, India and Pakistan.
At least no LBW.
googly
what a stupid name
Doogle
LOL!
BTW, I love that the authorities confined a big sports star to his home so he couldn't lead an anti-Bush march.
A march could have led to a sticky wicket that might have turned oogly.
Leni
Great googly moogly! [I heard that in some movie. It has to be related.]
Oh great picture. I am laughing my butt off!
You sure it wasn't Sanford and Son?
bttt
Great googly moogly.
I now see you beat me to that comment.
I loved it when the ball hit him, he dropped the 'bat' and started walking toward the pitcher with a 'stern' look in his face, kinda like batters do in the majors when the pitcher hits them.. It was so funny!
If my memory serves me correctly, 'great googly moogly' came from some old song in the 70's that I heard on FM radio. Something about 'Bertha Butt, one of the Butt sisters.'
That made me chuckle. Thanks.
Another blast from the past: "Barney, Barney Google. With those great big googy eyes."
No, that's "Ya Big Dummy!"
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