‘You don’t have many halves’: Robinson and Tongue split cricket ball after heroics

England cricketers Ollie Robinson and Josh Tongue shared a match ball by cutting it in half after both players took five wickets against Pakistan. The gesture served as a unique souvenir to commemorate their joint performance during the first Test.
Why it matters
It highlights a rare statistical occurrence in professional cricket and provides a human-interest angle on team camaraderie.
England’s Ollie Robinson holds up his sliced ball after he took five wickets on the opening day against Pakistan. Photograph: Rory Dollard/PA England’s Ollie Robinson holds up his sliced ball after he took five wickets on the opening day against Pakistan. Photograph: Rory Dollard/PA England v Pakistan 2026 ‘You don’t have many halves’: Robinson and Tongue split cricket ball after heroics Robinson and Tongue take five wickets each in first Test
Ball cut in half so duo could share honour against Pakistan
Prefer the Guardian on Google A ball cut in half was the solution to Ollie Robinson and Josh Tongue’s novel problem. Courtesy of a helpful member of the Headingley ground staff, the two quicks shared the souvenir after each took five wickets on the opening day of England’s first Test against Pakistan , with the visitors bowled out for 171.
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