Australian cricketer Phil Hughes dies from on field injury

[wolfking]

https://www.msn.com/en-au/sport/cricket/phillip-hughes-dies-australian-cricketer-dies-after-bouncer-at-scg/ar-BBg2zNH?ocid=mailsignout

https://www.theaustralian.com.au/sport/cricket/phillip-hughes-dead-test-cricketer-dies-from-brain-injury/story-e6frg7rx-1227137086710?nk=7c7860d982f6dacf0c07c53bbdc73c7a

This is just a tragic story that has hit a lot of us Aussies and cricket and sport lovers hard.  Phil was hit in the head by a bouncer and died from his injuries two days later.  Sometimes sport has some extreme outcomes.

This is just absolutely terrible, a young man only 25 making his way back into the big league, only to die doing what he loved.

[jimbosile]

Absolutely heartbreaking

[wolfking]

It really is.  So sad.

We had a injury in the NRL earlier this year with Alex McKinnon becoming a quadraplegic from a dangerous tackle, but this is just on another level of tragic.

[jimbosile]

It really is.  So sad.

We had a injury in the NRL earlier this year with Alex McKinnon becoming a quadraplegic from a dangerous tackle, but this is just on another level of tragic.

Especially because no one ever really considers the possibility of a cricket ball killing someone. Injuries in football tackles are a very real and thoughtabout danger. Even in the bodyline series, or the times of the great West Indian fast bowlers bowling to batters without helmets did anything even close to this happen. From the many accounts I've heard, there was never really any doubt from people internally that Phillip would eventually cement his place in the test team. Such a tragedy.

[wolfking]

It is more of a shock because of the sport and you don't really expect this to happen, but there have been many serious injuries to batsmen from bowlers.  Even there was an Indian player that died from being hit while fielding in 1998.  But saying that, cricket injuries are rare, and this particular injury was a freak accident.  I feel for Sean Abbot who bolwed the ball.

And yeah, he was the favourite to replace Michael Clarke in the test match next week.

[TAC]

Just read that on the MSN homepage. I thought of our Australian DTFers.
Very sad indeed.

[bl5150]

Yes - shook me up a bit too.   75% of the traffic on the road in Melbourne this evening had their headlights on before it got dark in tribute.

We're less than a week away from a Test match against India too , which would be very hard for the players to get up for.  They have a hard decision to make - go ahead and make it a tribute to the man or cancel it to allow the players to grieve and cost all involved a fortune.

I also wonder about the psychological impact going forward .  Are the batsmen going to walk out with the same confidence?

Will Mitchell Johnson (who is a massive confidence player and recently turned his game around to become the most fearsome bowler in world cricket) be the same player................scared to bowl at his peak for fear of being labelled a potential killer?

It would be playing with my head I can assure you.

And will parents like me , who have their sons in cricket, think twice now.   It's going to have far reaching consequences.

[ich bin besser]

As sad as this is (and it is...!): he died while doing something he loved.

[RoeDent]

I'm glad this has been acknowledged on here. I suspect many are American and are not really familiar with cricket, but this is a dark day for sport, full stop.

[wolfking]

Yes - shook me up a bit too.   75% of the traffic on the road in Melbourne this evening had their headlights on before it got dark in tribute.

We're less than a week away from a Test match against India too , which would be very hard for the players to get up for.  They have a hard decision to make - go ahead and make it a tribute to the man or cancel it to allow the players to grieve and cost all involved a fortune.

I also wonder about the psychological impact going forward .  Are the batsmen going to walk out with the same confidence?

Will Mitchell Johnson (who is a massive confidence player and recently turned his game around to become the most fearsome bowler in world cricket) be the same player................scared to bowl at his peak for fear of being labelled a potential killer?

It would be playing with my head I can assure you.

And will parents like me , who have their sons in cricket, think twice now.   It's going to have far reaching consequences.

Everything you mention here Brent is legit.  I believe the game will go on, as it's very raw at the moment, but in some ways, the game will never recover IMO.

I think the test match next week is a tricky one.  It seems irrelevant whether to even bother stepping onto the field, and I think if it does go ahead, players should be allowed to play or not play, simple as that.  Some would still need time, but other may want to go out there and play for their mate.  I'm sure Phil would never want the game to stop though.  Perhaps if the test were 2 weeks ago, it would be fine to go ahead, it just falls in that awkward time frame.

Parents who have kids in rugby league were asking the same questions when Alex McKinnon got injured, but the game has continued as strong as ever.  Phil Hughes was one in a million accidents and that exact ball has been bowled countless times, and will continue so. 

I think everything is just too raw at the moment, and thoughts and emotions are all over the place.

I'm glad this has been acknowledged on here. I suspect many are American and are not really familiar with cricket, but this is a dark day for sport, full stop.

Yeah that's why I posted it.  While no one outside Australia would know him, it's as you say, one of the darkest days in any sport ever.  I still can't quite believe it.

[TempusVox]

Wow! So how fast does the ball leave the "bat stick paddle thingy"? In baseball, there have been several deaths involving young people being struck by batted balls. And last year "The Cuban Missile" Aroldis Chapman had his face crushed and split basically by a batted ball, and he came back and later pitched in the same season, lights out by the way. Chapman routinely throws around 100mph, so the ball that hit him was around 100-135 mph.

Sorry for the Aussies fans and especially his family.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TZRJmlD3wiM

[TioJorge]

I'll echo the statements made and say that this is a real tragedy. It's one reason of many why I stopped playing (American) football and why I really dislike a lot of sports these days. I'm not a gung-ho fanatic against them and still really enjoy a good game, but it's things like this that really just break my heart. He loved it though, and I suppose that's what mattered to him. I don't know anything at all about Rugby but I do have a couple Aussie friends and heard about it through one of them, seems that it's a more brutal sport than it looks or than I knew of. 

Rest easy.

[bl5150]

Wow! So how fast does the ball leave the "bat stick paddle thingy"? In baseball, there have been several deaths involving young people being struck by batted balls. And last year "The Cuban Missile" Aroldis Chapman had his face crushed and split basically by a batted ball, and he came back and later pitched in the same season, lights out by the way. Chapman routinely throws around 100mph, so the ball that hit him was around 100-135 mph.

Sorry for the Aussies fans and especially his family.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TZRJmlD3wiM

The fastest bowlers bowl at 100mph and the ball's much harder than a baseball...........so      If it hits you , you stay hit.....I know from experience.  In this case it didn't come off the bat - the bowler (who also deserves sympathy) just got him.  In baseball I suppose you have an idea that the ball is coming at you on the full - in cricket you have no idea at what height/angle the ball might come at you (often at your head on purpose) , so I suppose it adds some extra danger.

It's hard to believe that within my lifetime they faced up to the same thing with just a cap on.  Many years ago our Prime Minister almost lost an eye when he copped a ball in the glasses.

The doctor said that this injury has only happened 100 times anywhere in history and only once on a cricket field.  It hit and split a major vessel below the ear that leads to the brain. Just a freak accident.

[wolfking]

Wow! So how fast does the ball leave the "bat stick paddle thingy"? In baseball, there have been several deaths involving young people being struck by batted balls. And last year "The Cuban Missile" Aroldis Chapman had his face crushed and split basically by a batted ball, and he came back and later pitched in the same season, lights out by the way. Chapman routinely throws around 100mph, so the ball that hit him was around 100-135 mph.

Sorry for the Aussies fans and especially his family.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TZRJmlD3wiM

The fastest bowlers bowl at 100mph and the ball's much harder than a baseball...........so      If it hits you , you stay hit.....I know from experience.  In this case it didn't come off the bat - the bowler (who also deserves sympathy) just got him.  In baseball I suppose you have an idea that the ball is coming at you on the full - in cricket you have no idea at what height/angle the ball might come at you , so I suppose it adds some extra danger.

It's hard to believe that within my lifetime they faced up to the same thing with just a cap on.  Many years ago our Prime Minister almost lost an eye when he copped a ball in the glasses.

The doctor said that this injury has only happened 100 times anywhere in history and only once on a cricket field.  It hit and split a major vessel below the ear that leads to the brain. Just a freak accident.

I always thought this, even when I was a young 'un watching the game.  I don't think we will ever see that again.

That baseball video makes the stomach turn a bit, but as Brent said, a cricket ball is much harder.  And yeah, it just hit Phil in the wrong place.  It's frustrating to think that if it was just an inch or so over, he probably would have been okay.

[TempusVox]

Just checked...only one bowler ever threw 100 mph. Most is in the 80's-90-'s . Still a large golf ball basically coming in would be pretty serious hitting you at that speed. It looked like it hit him in just the absolute worst spot on his neck. One of those freak things. Sad.

Also baseballs aren't as soft as you'd think they are if you've never held one. But even with all the protection in cricket, I'd hate to get drilled by a cricket ball.

[wolfking]

Just checked...only one bowler ever threw 100 mph. Most is in the 80's-90-'s . Still a large golf ball basically coming in would be pretty serious hitting you at that speed. It looked like it hit him in just the absolute worst spot on his neck. One of those freak things. Sad.

Also baseballs aren't as soft as you'd think they are if you've never held one. But even with all the protection in cricket, I'd hate to get drilled by a cricket ball.

That's the thing.  This looked like just a normal bouncer and we see players get hit by them all the time.  Phil's hit even though low quality, looks mild compared to others that have happened in the past.  It just hit in the worst spot possible.  just a tragic, tragic accident.

[bl5150]

Not that it really matters but plenty have bowled at or around 100mph (160kmh)

https://sporteology.com/top-10-fastest-bowlers-in-the-history-of-cricket/

Some say Thommo (Jeff Thomson) was up above 170kmh before the days of radar guns and that was pre-helmet days.  Scary.

I had an uncle who was going to be "the next Bradman" (as per a news article) , got hit in the head and was never the same player.  Just the fact that this happened is going to play with players' minds for a long time to come.

[wolfking]

Not that it really matters but plenty have bowled at or around 100mph (160kmh)

https://sporteology.com/top-10-fastest-bowlers-in-the-history-of-cricket/

Some say Thommo (Jeff Thomson) was up above 170kmh before the days of radar guns and that was pre-helmet days.  Scary.

I had an uncle who was going to be "the next Bradman" (as per a news article) , got hit in the head and was never the same player.  Just the fact that this happened is going to play with players' minds for a long time to come.

I think that's one of the biggest things.  The psychological factor will change players and the game a bit.

[bl5150]

I think that's one of the biggest things.  The psychological factor will change players and the game a bit.

Good article - makes Piers Morgan look like an even bigger dickhead...........not to mention Brett Lee. 

https://www.theage.com.au/sport/cricket/phil-hughes-injury-brings-fear-to-the-surface-20141127-11uj9h.html

and another

https://www.theguardian.com/sport/blog/2014/nov/27/cricket-naked-aggression-calm-down-phillip-hughes-death

[wolfking]

That was a well written article.  The last paragraph is really something to think about.  Who is brave enough to be the first bowler back to throw a bouncer, and how do the commentators approach it?  It's frightening stuff really.

I remember that Piers and Lee thing, fucking nuts now.

[TioJorge]

At the risk of turning a mourning thread into something else, I too am pretty interested in seeing the affects this has on morale, confidence, and certainly in the violence of the sport. I think that most will turn it down a few notches in every aspect, but surely there's going to be that cocksucker that turns it up even more to either spite the ones that were affected and/or to show that he's an emotionless awesome dude that is pure athlete.

Now it's time to be a hypocrite: Perhaps we should start a new thread? It does sound like an interesting subject but...this probably isn't the place to do it. I'm not sure, I can't really tell... It was his death that started this so maybe this is okay. Respect is of utmost importance though.

[rumborak]

I understand how sad this event is, but I'm not sure I see why there would be any lasting impact on the game, given how this was a freak accident.

[bl5150]

I understand how sad this event is, but I'm not sure I see why there would be any lasting impact on the game, given how this was a freak accident.

It's hard to understand if you haven't played/watched the game closely.  Much of it is explained in the articles I linked above.

  Cricket is a much more combative sport than many others - bowlers literally go out there with a weapon with the aim of scaring the hell out of batsmen to generate an error and if that involves hurting them with the ball then that's fine and dandy.  I could be wrong but I would think that'd be a rare thing in say baseball whereas it's an every day event in cricket......that intent.

There's also plenty of "sledging" where players let each other know that they're going to cop one next.  In the article I linked above it mentions the Australian captain (arguably the most prestigious title in Aussie sport) telling an opposition batsman who had been abusing one of our players to "get ready for a fckin broken arm".   The commentators on the game also take great delight in calling the bowling "lethal" and so forth ........a lot of people are going to think twice now in a number of areas and the effect won't be fleeting.

[wolfking]

Brent is spot on.  Seeing a bowler basically back a batsmen in a corner with ferocious deliveries until he chokes was something to behold.  Intimidation was a big factor from a fielding side. 

Everytime a bouncer is ducked and carries through to the keeper is going to bring this memory back.  Definitely will impact a lot more than what people think, for a while at least.

[jimbosile]

I understand how sad this event is, but I'm not sure I see why there would be any lasting impact on the game, given how this was a freak accident.

For the reason that the ball that struck Hughes was essentially a perfect ball. Intimidating bowling is one of the most exciting and important aspects of the game. Freak accident sure, but the same ball would normally be bowled many times every game. Bowlers might think twice about bowling it from now on, which would take one of the best elements out of the game.

[wolfking]

I understand how sad this event is, but I'm not sure I see why there would be any lasting impact on the game, given how this was a freak accident.

For the reason that the ball that struck Hughes was essentially a perfect ball. Intimidating bowling is one of the most exciting and important aspects of the game. Freak accident sure, but the same ball would normally be bowled many times every game. Bowlers might think twice about bowling it from now on, which would take one of the best elements out of the game.

And that's why it has the potential to upset the game in such a way.

[jimbosile]

I understand how sad this event is, but I'm not sure I see why there would be any lasting impact on the game, given how this was a freak accident.

For the reason that the ball that struck Hughes was essentially a perfect ball. Intimidating bowling is one of the most exciting and important aspects of the game. Freak accident sure, but the same ball would normally be bowled many times every game. Bowlers might think twice about bowling it from now on, which would take one of the best elements out of the game.

And that's why it has the potential to upset the game in such a way.

That was my point.

[wolfking]

I understand how sad this event is, but I'm not sure I see why there would be any lasting impact on the game, given how this was a freak accident.

For the reason that the ball that struck Hughes was essentially a perfect ball. Intimidating bowling is one of the most exciting and important aspects of the game. Freak accident sure, but the same ball would normally be bowled many times every game. Bowlers might think twice about bowling it from now on, which would take one of the best elements out of the game.

And that's why it has the potential to upset the game in such a way.

That was my point.

i know, and a vital one. 

[rumborak]

As someone who really only watches soccer and plays Volleyball, two decisively non-contact sports, the concept of having the threat of physical injury a key part in a sport is definitely strange. And probably, in the long run, asking for an outcome like this. Just like American Football's implicit threat of physical harm is becoming a problem for the sport too.

[TioJorge]

Ohhhh Rumby, you must be new to Earth, where violence rules everything.

[jimbosile]

As someone who really only watches soccer and plays Volleyball, two decisively non-contact sports, the concept of having the threat of physical injury a key part in a sport is definitely strange. And probably, in the long run, asking for an outcome like this. Just like American Football's implicit threat of physical harm is becoming a problem for the sport too.

There's two sides to it though. A bowler's intention isn't to hurt the batsman, but it is to get inside his head, keep him guessing where the ball is going, stop his feet from moving etc. On the other hand, if a batsman is good enough, they can attack the bowler and turn these balls into scoring shots. That's the beauty of cricket, test cricket especially. Every single ball is a contest between batter and bowler. You take the bouncer out of the game and it rips the very essence of the game out.
Last year in the first test of the Ashes series, England got the Australian captain, Clarke out cheaply in the first innings with a short ball. After that, they were convinced he couldn't play the short ball and they thought they had his measure. In the second innings, their plan was to pepper him with short balls and watch him crumble. They bowled one short, he got on the front foot and pulled it for 4. Pretty much in that one ball, he would have destroyed the confidence of the England bowlers and he went on to make a century. One of the defining moments of the entire series.
It's such an interesting aspect of the game.

[rumborak]

Ohhhh Rumby, you must be new to Earth, where violence rules everything.

Not when it comes to sports. There are a lot of sports that explicitly forbid physical injury, or even overt contact, like basketball. It's a large spectrum of course, with American Football and Rugby on one end, and things like soccer, Volleyball and basketball at the other.
Cricket seems pretty non-physical too from what I remember, and I guess the threat of harm is more of a tactic than an actually often-seen thing. But yeah, I could see how an event like this could subtly shift the dynamics of the game.

[bl5150]

You can see a little of what we're talking about..............this is Brett Lee at about 85% of his top pace slicing a guys nose via the helmet.  The crowd seem to enjoy it , the commentators feign concern but replay it over and over.   At least Brett Lee shows some concern - it wouldn't be totally unusual for the bowler to stand there, stare him out and say "there's more where that came from buddy" 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TQOp3yY1TH0#t=40



And another couple of more serious ones from Mr Lee at his peak

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gMzwGAkhJLk

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X46iJhdUsJU

The commentators loved this one that stuffed the guy's hip

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yV77flXUQ5U


You get the picture........

[jimbosile]

Back to Hughes, this is a great post I read on another forum that tells us the type of guy he was.

Oh yeah. He just knew how to make runs. I've been emotionally invested in his career since his debut. I wish he was treated better by selectors in his early days. He could have been anything.

You look at some of the records he holds in a career that didn't reach half way even. Youngest to make centuries in both innings of a Test, against Steyn, Morkel, Ntini, and Kallis mind you. Youngest century maker in a Sheffield Shield final. First Aussie to make a century on ODI debut. That record final wicket stand with Agar. In just July this year became the first Aussie to make 200 in a Limited over match, people should go watch highlights of it, the audacity of some of the shots. And he was a seriously underrated 50 over player. The only Australian with a List A average better than Hughes is Michael Bevan!

You can see how much playing for Australia meant to him in the way he worked on his game so hard. Did he have a problem with the short ball? Not to the degree people made out. But he still worked hard on it after his dropping. Did he have a problem against Swann and spin? Yes, so he worked very very hard developing a sweep shot and a method to combat it. He was the first player over in the UAE before the series a few months ago trying to get used to the conditions and working out a plan against spin, didn't end up playing a game! When people worked out his love of the off-side he opened his game up by working on playing off his legs better. When people thought NZ had worked him out around off-stump he goes to County cricket and busts a gut trying to fix it.

I remember the knock on him and Khawaja was that they weren't busy enough between the wickets and in the field. Hughes you could genuinely see improve himself in the field and working singles, twos, and threes. I read the other day Aakash Chopra talking about how part of the problem with modern batsmen is they aren't able or willing to fix inadequacies. And thats true, you only have to look at a Glenn Maxwell to see it. Whereas Hughes was one of the few exceptions to that, clearly just a great cricket man who wanted to be the best he could be so that he could represent his country. He played for the right reasons and respected the game in a way I wish all Australian cricketers would.

[wolfking]

You can see a little of what we're talking about..............this is Brett Lee at about 85% of his top pace slicing a guys nose via the helmet.  The crowd seem to enjoy it , the commentators feign concern but replay it over and over.   At least Brett Lee shows some concern - it wouldn't be totally unusual for the bowler to stand there, stare him out and say "there's more where that came from buddy" 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TQOp3yY1TH0#t=40



And another couple of more serious ones from Mr Lee at his peak

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gMzwGAkhJLk

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X46iJhdUsJU

The commentators loved this one that stuffed the guy's hip

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yV77flXUQ5U


You get the picture........

That Tudor one is freaking nasty.

Taylor, Healy and Hussey(?) sound like dickheads in that last one.  Terrible lack of compassion from the Aussies in that one too.