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- Cricketer Alex Hales had a tough day at the office on Sunday.
- Hales was struck in the crotch on back-to-back balls from the bowler.
- Despite the direct hits, Hales was able to crack jokes about his misfortune the morning after the match.
- Visit Insider's homepage for more stories.
Cricketer Alex Hales had a tough weekend.
Playing for the Trent Rockets against the Oval Invincibles in The Hundred, a new cricket tournament in England, Hales had only a brief moment to enjoy the spotlight on Sunday night before his evening took a turn for the worse.
Facing down bowler Reece Topley, Hales took a ball travelling over 80-miles-per-hour straight to the groin, tumbling over in pain.
"That has nailed him in the gooly wooly woolies," one commentator said of Hales unfortunate turn of luck. "That is painful."
Hales got up, dusted himself off, and prepared for his next swing.
This time, he deflected the ball off his bat into his own family jewels.
Two balls. Two shots straight to what a BBC commentator called "the unmentionables."
-The Hundred (@thehundred) August 8, 2021
While this writer personally knows very little about cricket, Insider's UK sports editor Will Martin was present at Sunday night's game, and was able to see Hales take his hits live in person.
He reported a lot of laughter in the crowd, as well as sarcastic cheering when Hales managed to not get hit in the groin a third time.
"Once we realized he wasn't badly hurt, it was hilarious, obviously," Martin told Insider, in a Slack conversation that preceded the writing of this blog.
Thankfully, Hales was okay, and was able to crack jokes about his misfortune once he gathered himself up post-game.
-Alex Hales (@AlexHales1) August 9, 2021
The Oval Invincibles wound up defeating Hales and the Trent Rockets by nine runs.