One year ago, the cricket world was in collective mourning after precocious Australian batsman Phil Hughes tragically died. The 25-year-old was felled by a bouncer from paceman Sean Abbott during a Sheffield Shield game two days earlier. Hughes lost consciousness immediately and was placed in an induced coma.
File image of Phil Hughes. AFP
Hearing the tragic news of his death is one of those moments you’ll never forget. For me, it feels so vivid like it happened yesterday. My deadline at the newspaper I was working for in Australia had passed, providing an opportune time to take a momentary breather. The post apocalypse, as it is known in the industry.
Suddenly, in a split second, everything changed when my colleague uttered two words I’ll never forget: “Hughes died.” I did not instantly comprehend those two heart wrenching words. I was in a state of shock. All along, I, like many observers, expected Hughes to recover. Maybe we were all in denial. Pictures had emerged of ashen-faced Aussie cricketers exiting St Vincent’s Hospital. Brad Haddin, who had dealt with his fair share of misfortune, looked crestfallen. You could probably read between the lines of the tragedy unfolding. Still, I refused to accept the worst until the bitter realisation finally sank in.
The painful aftermath was exacerbated by being in a country which places its national cricketers on a pedestal. There was an outpouring of emotion. Grief, anguish, anger, emptiness, disappointment…everything was expressed. The numbness and collective sadness was palpable. The first Test between Australia and India was postponed. First class cricket in Australia was called off. Cricketers didn’t want to play. Nobody particularly wanted to watch cricket. It was an extremely hollow period, where everyone just felt collectively glum.
Amid the rawness, no one quite knew which trajectory the sport was headed. The consensus from medical experts was that Hughes’ death was a freak accident. Still, few felt particularly comforted by that diagnosis. There were calls for more safety and added protection with helmets. Some believed bouncers should be outlawed. Nobody knew whether the prevalent use of the short ball, which had always been a beloved part of the game and spawned some of cricket’s most visceral images, would still be a tactic encouraged by captains.
Undeniably, it seemed the game would be changed forever. It certainly felt a lot different.
Fast forward a year, and the anniversary has provided solitude and an opportunity to reflect leading to another outpouring of emotion. We’ve revisited the tragic incident and the ensuing sadness that was overwhelming one year ago.
It felt markedly different after Hughes’ death but cricket endures. Hughes would have wanted it this way. The sport continues to be played essentially the same since pre Hughes’ passing. Short balls are still bowled, and hostile bowling remains one of the sport’s indelible trademarks. This was evident at the World Cup earlier this year where one of the tournament’s indelible memories was Pakistan’s Wahab Riaz’s ferocious spell of bowling that shook up Australian batsman Shane Watson.
Even at the recent Test between New Zealand and Australia, there was a real lament from traditionalists over the WACA’s benign pitch. Everyone, including players from both teams, wanted more fire and brimstone from a pitch universally revered because of its pace and bounce.
There was lots of talk over helmet safety following Hughes’ death but there has been no advancement to date. There are cricketers seen wearing the clip-on neck guard at the base of the helmet - Kumar Sangakkara, Angelo Mathews to name a few - but it is a practice that is still not widely prevalent. Shikhar Dhawan, India's opening batsmen, recently got hit just below the helmet during the Test match in Sri Lanka and was not wearing the protective guard then, something he has corrected since.
Cricket Australia makes it compulsory to wear helmets that comply with the 2013 British Safety Standard on Helmets. These helmets do not cover the back of the neck in it's entirety but are believed to be the safest currently available. Players from other countries are not forced to wear these helmets.
The 'Put your bats out' tribute after Phil Hughes tragic death. Getty
Cricket, the on-field product, has remained relatively untouched. It still looks much the same. But it is undeniable Hughes’ tragic passing continues to haunt and gnaw away. Some of the purity of this staid sport is gone, probably forever.
Australian cricketers have touched on this. Recently retired Australian paceman Mitchell Johnson revealed he doubted himself morally after Hughes’ death and queried whether to continue bowling bouncers.
Panic and momentary anxiety now ensues every time a player is hit in the helmet. No longer do the opposition scowl at a staggered batsman. Crowds do not holler. Instead, a murmur of trepidation reverberates around the ground.
In the lead up to the current Adelaide Test, Australian all-rounder Mitchell Marsh smashed a ball which struck a young net bowler during training. The young bowler was not seriously hurt and was treated for a laceration to his ear. Still, Marsh and other players at the scene were visibly upset.
The spectre of Hughes’ tragic death continues to linger. Maybe the increased safety helmets will alleviate the nagging concerns, which remain the elephant in the room of every cricket match and training session. But that’s unlikely to totally negate the uncertainty.
For many fans, myself included, cricket had always been a welcome distraction from reality. Unfortunately, the Hughes tragedy offered a reminder that cricket, and all sports, is not immune from life’s cruel twists and the quirks of fate.
One year on, cricket feels and looks much the same.
Deep down, we know it is not.
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