Lord's and laddies: an India fan soaks in the aftermath of the 1983 World Cup final outside the pavilion at Lord's Dave Cannon / © Allsport/Getty Images

Where does cricket begin and end? If you're a professional player, in the pavilion. It's the venue for post-win parties in dressing rooms, a place of refuge after a long day's play, and a surprisingly long walk away if you've just picked up a golden duck.

Of all the pavilions in cricket, none are more recognisable than the one at Lord's. After the original structure burned down in a fire, the pavilion as we know it today was built in 1890 at a cost of £21,000 (approx £3 million today). In the photo above, it catches the last rays of the sun on the day India first took home the World Cup, in 1983.

Lord's was also one of the venues for the 2012 Olympics, when it hosted the men's and women's archery events, and the members' pavilion was turned into a bandstand for the occasion.

Band at Lord's: when the big brass took over the members pavilion Paul Gilham / © Getty Images

England has long had a monopoly on some of the prettiest pavilions in cricket, be it the big-name grounds or village greens - take a gander at the one in Bridgetown, Somerset.

Doug Sherring the groundsman of 67 years at Bridgetown Cricket Club and his dog Jack are rightfully proud of the picturesque ground and clubhouse Michael Steele / © Getty Images

But some flatter to deceive, like the one in Wormsley, at the Getty family estate. It is one of the most stunning cricket grounds but don't be fooled by the twee thatched roof and faux-Tudor facade of the pavilion - it was built in 1992 after Mick Jagger piqued Paul Getty's interest in cricket.

Pretty as a picture: Wormsley at the Getty estate has hosted touring matches between visiting teams and Paul Getty's XI © Getty Images

So important was a pavilion to the Sutton Cricket Ground - they hadn't had one since 1858 - that in 1865 they bought the old Sutton Railway Station waiting room and had it installed at the ground. It stood for nearly four decades before it was destroyed in the Blitz and a new one constructed in 1955.

The Sutton pavilion might be the only instance where the station has left the train © Getty Images

Castle Ashby House's pavilion is straight out of a fairy tale - Hansel and Gretel, maybe.

A father and son knock about in front of Castle Ashby House's gingerbread pavilion Lawrence Griffiths / © Getty Images

The many pavilions at Azad Maidan in Mumbai may not win any beauty contests but the snacks offer some stiff competition.

Spicy pitches, hot snacks - name a better duo © Getty Images

But can they compete with the famous tea-time cakes of the Ladies Pavilion at New Road?

Tart attack: cricket is only the second-best attraction at the New Road stadium © PA Photos

Bombay Gymkhana, one of the oldest members' clubs in India, was built in 1875 and remains extremely difficult to get into. But it's prettier from the outside anyway.

Don't sleep on history: a spectator naps against the backdrop of Bombay Gymkhana's pavilion © Getty Images

But history gives way to geography when the player has to map his way back to the green room after an ignominious dismissal.

Sourav Ganguly makes the long trek back after losing his wicket for the final time in Test cricket, at the Vidarbha Association Stadium in 2008 Indranil Mukherjee / © Getty Images

So dreaded is that walk of shame back that players would rather the ground open up and swallow them whole, which is exactly the idea a cartoonist had in the early 1900s.

Stop, drop and stroll: an artist imagines a shame-free return to the green room © Universal History Archive/Getty Images

Deepti Unni is an assistant editor at ESPNcricinfo

© ESPN Sports Media Ltd.

 

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