+1

I wish Phil Hughes all the best. He's a gritty and determined cricketer; he'll need lots of those qualities in the months ahead.

I played cricket (very badly, mainly in the lower leagues) in the pre-helmet era. I was a specialist no. 11 batsman, and sometimes had to face some hostile and erratic fast bowling on pitches of dubious quality when the opposition was trying to win the match by getting rid of the tail. I also often faced very fast first-team bowlers in the practice nets. I got hit on the chest, forearm, shoulder, fingers and foot, but I never got "sconed". I think that, although helmets are an essential facet of cricket, they can create a false sense of security in batsmen. I knew how to keep my head out of the way when the balls were flying about above shoulder height.

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But this incident wouldn't have happened if Phil had observed the 1st rule of a batsman, "keep your eyes on the ball". Phil broke that rule and has sadly paid for it. :-(

Helmets are designed, when the grill is correctly adjusted, to protect the face and top of the head, Phil turned his face away from the ball resulting in that ball hitting him in the lower part of the back of his head where there is no protection.

The next 2 days for him will be critical to his survival according to the doctors.

A sad loss to the game. Condolences to his family.

R.I.P Phil

Sadly, I was expecting that outcome. :-(

R.I.P.

On that sad note, I'll get the thread locked & start a new one in a day or two.