Jeers were expected for Pakistan paceman Mohammad Amir on Thursday at the day-night first Test against Australia in Brisbane.
Still, few would have predicted the send-off Amir received at the Gabba - or it seems, his return.
The left-arm quick was taken off the field on a stretcher after suffering what appeared to be a serious knee injury while fielding on day one of the pink-ball Test.
Amir will undergo scans on Friday but, surprisingly, the fast bowler later returned to the field on Thursday evening during Australia's first innings.
"His knee went into the ground and we all feared it might be worse but, thank God, he recovered very quickly and came back and he's feeling much, much better," Azhar Ali said of Amir's injury.
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"He came on and bowled with the second new ball, which is a very good sign."
A lively, packed Gabba crowd first delighted in Amir's gaffe when he dug his right knee into the turf near the boundary and crumpled to the ground, conceding a four to Peter Handscomb.
However, the crowd became more subdued as Amir remained on the ground and they eventually applauded the speedster off the field as concerned teammates looked on.
"Hopefully, it's not as bad as it first looked - bad bruising and not something major," ex-Test skipper Mark Taylor said.
There were concerns Amir would cop it from the Gabba crowd after serving three months in prison for spot-fixing.
"Hopefully, people won't care about that. He was a young lad who was led astray - he's done his time," former Australian Test opener Chris Rogers told ABC radio of Amir's plight.
Amir was mocked by New Zealand fans - and, at one stage, even a ground announcer - on his first international tour in January since serving a five-year ban from cricket.
Thankfully, there was no sledging of Amir from the Brisbane faithful on Thursday - but history did repeat at the Gabba.
Amir became the latest high-profile player to fall foul of the Gabba turf.
England quick Simon Jones infamously damaged his knee sliding in the field during the 2002 Ashes Test in Brisbane.
And South Africa's JP Duminy tore an achilles in a freak training accident in 2012 in Brisbane.
Both were sidelined for six months.
However, Amir - jailed for accepting bribes for bowling no-balls at Lord's in 2010 - looks to have avoided another lengthy sideline stint.
