Ironically the game of cricket which is known as a “Gentleman’s Game” is played with such ferocity that it can even claim a life. Incidentally, Australian batsman Philip Hughes became the first international cricketer to die from an head injury suffered while batting. His death has shocked the cricketing fraternity and opened a debate on safety in cricket. A cricket ball travelling at 85 miles an hour can kill if it hits the head. A death on the sports field always brings gloom to the sporting fraternity irrespective of the sport involved. It may be recalled that in 1998 Indian cricketer Raman Lamba died of a head injury while fielding in a match in Bangladesh. That opens a debate on how effectively does a head-gear protect a cricketer.
One may recall the infamous bodyline series between England and Australia in 1932 during which the bowler used to intimidate the batsman by bowling at the body. The world has seen some great speedsters like Australians Dennis Lillee and Jeff Thomson and the West Indian fast bowlers like Malcolm Marshal and Joel Garner and Waqar Younis of Pakistan who could hurl a cricket ball at tremendous speed. They were bowlers who could intimidate the batsman because of their sheer speed. Because of the danger that the batsman face to their lives the number of bouncers were than restricted to two per over. But then it must be said that it takes only one lethal bouncer and misjudgement by the batsman to prove it to be a fatal blow.
Helmets are not 100 per cent safe. It must be said that the injury of Philip Hughes, which caused his death was a freak one as the ball hit the neck and reportedly caused a vertebral artery dissection, a tear of the artery, which has similar symptoms to strangulation and strokes. It must be said that the helmet used by cricketers do not protect the base of the head and the neck region hence these vital parts of the body are vulnerable to such injuries. In today’s cricket not even the tail-enders, who are not very proficient in their batting skills are protected from the rummaging and intimidating bowlers.
Great batsmen like Sunil Gavaskar preferred not to wear a helmet while batting but he wore a peculiar head gear under the cricket cap. But not every batsman is as great as the little master that he can play without a protective head gear. Probably the only way to make cricket a safer game is to ban short-pitch bouncers altogether.
