Gary Kirsten suffers cracked jaw during training accident

What's the news?

Former South Africa cricketer Gary Kirsten, now coaching the Hobart Hurricanes franchise in the Big Bash League (BBL), has suffered a broken jaw as a result of a smashing return hit from batsman D'Arcy Short at the Blundstone Arena in Hobart. "It was wet, so we were in the indoor centre. Darce [Short] just whacked one back at him that he didn't pick up in time," the Hurricanes skipper George Bailey told cricket.com.au in relation to the incident.

In case you didn't know..

Kirsten was immediately given dental treatment following the freak injury as the team was training indoors following a wet outfield. The fifty-year-old broke his teeth though would not be needing surgery, as Short, the highest run-getter of the tournament, hit with extreme power.

Incidentally, earlier in the day, Pakistan's all-rounder Shoaib Malik was hit hard on the head by a throw from Colin Munro during an ODI at Hamilton between New Zealand and Pakistan. Though Malik was reported to be fine, he did not take the field when his side came out to bowl.

The heart of the matter

Bailey shed further light on the matter by saying, “[Kirsten] has actually come out of it very luckily in the big scheme of things. He said that he's probably been a blase about that over the years. It's obviously prompted [a change] – everyone has had [helmets] on since.”

Author's Take

Perhaps it is time that even coaches – after on-field umpires – started adhering to protection on the field with bigger and stronger bats ruling the game. In fact, last month, even a bowler, Otago's Warren Barnes, sported a helmet-like protection on the head in a domestic T20 game in New Zealand.