5 worst on-field collisions in cricket

The macabre incident involving Sussex cricketers Rory Burns and Moises Henriques reminds us once again about the lack of safety in contact sports in spite of stringent rules and massively upgraded precautionary measures. It also throws up a hint or two about the frailty of even the best-trained human bodies and the helplessness one feels in the face of inevitability.Let us have a look at a few instances where on-field collisions in the cricket field resulted in gruesome injuries.

#5 Brendon McCullum and Kyle Mills

A sickening collision involving the two Kiwi players

The ultimate consequences of this incident were the least damaging in comparison to the list here, although the manner was neither too smooth, nor aesthetically appealing. That Kyle Mills had been able to get away without losing an eye was lucky indeed, considering Brendon McCullum’s stoic stature and heavily gloved hands.

Yuvraj Singh had been living dangerously for quite some time in his comeback game for the Indian team after his inspiring battle with cancer, when he top-edged a short delivery high up in the air. As the ball lingered in the air for what seemed like an eternity, New Zealand wicketkeeper McCullum ran back and towards leg with his stretched in front. Unaware of his teammate, Mills swooped in from the outfield, his eyes fixated on the white sphere.

A nightmarish collision witnessed McCullum rolling over Mills and spinning quite a distance. Concern, however, emerged not on the dropped catch, but on Mills who was lying down on the ground having taken a blow from the keeper’s elbow on the head. As he walked off the field after a few minutes of on-field treatment, the sightscreen focused on his bruised eye that had turned black from internal hemorrhage.

#4 Jeff Thomson and Alan Turner

‘Dead as a maggot’

The opening day of the first Test between Australia and Pakistan in late 1976 promised lots of action given the steady rise of Pakistanis in international cricket and the lethality of Australian speedsters being unanimously feared across the world. No wonder, of the three wickets to have fallen for Pakistan before 100, Jeff Thomson had scalped two.

Partnering Zaheer Abbas, was Javed Miandad as the duo strode in after lunch with hopes of a revival. Thomson charged in, bowled at full pace, achieved a top edge off Abbas. Just as Alan Turner at mid-wicket began heading for the catch, Thomson started chasing the cherry too, eyes at the sky. A sickening collision later, the pacer was found swearing with his arm dangling loosely by the side while the other one seemed, in Thomson’s words, ‘as dead as a maggot’.

Turner recovered to bat again in the Test but Thomson was ruled out of the entire series with a dislocated shoulder. He returned for the 1977 Ashes in England and picked up 23 wickets at an average of 25.34 spearheading the attack in Lillie’s absence, despite not being as consistently fast and incisive as he used to be.

#3 Jason Gillespie and Steve Waugh

Players gathering together after the duo collided

The second day of the Galle Test of 1999 presented with an interesting backdrop of Sri Lanka reducing the Baggy Greens to 61/7 before a gritty Ricky Ponting and a desperate Jason Gillespie took them to 188. While the Lankans cruised towards an easy lead on the back of some firm batting by Aravinda de Silva and Mahela Jayawardene, fate banged the last nail in the coffin for the Australians as disaster struck.

Jayawardene stooped down on his back knee and pulled a Colin Miller delivery towards leg. As the camera focused on Gillespie rushing in from the deep, Steve Waugh’s back suddenly emerged on the scene having run all the way from square leg. Both, however, failed to reach the ball and collided in a nasty fashion that saw Gillespie tumbling over his teammate and hitting the ground sideways.

Waugh remained on lying on the grass wincing in pain, blood oozing from his nose, while the pacer sat upright checking his right leg as the physio sprinted in. The former was taken to an ambulance and was diagnosed with a severely lacerated disfigured nose, and the latter had to be carried off the ground for what was later found to be a tibial fracture.

#2 Rory Burns and Moises Henriques

The match was suspended after their collision

In what was barely a week ago, Sussex cricketers Rory Burns and Moises Henriques collided in a horrifying fashion with the consequence of the match being called off after 18.4 overs. With the tragedy of Phil Hughes fresh in mind, another on-field accident, quite naturally, elicited the worst fears.

It had largely been a normal T20 match at Arundel until Surrey’s Steffan Piolet decided to go for a skier off a Tom Curran delivery. Burns dashed in from deep cover while Henriques sprinted backwards from point, neither aware of the other’s existence. Their faces collided at a pace and moments later, both lay completely unconscious on the ground.

Both were provided immediate treatment including oxygen and intravenous painkillers once the medical staff and ambulance had entered the field. Henriques regained consciousness and waved to the shocked crowd while being carried off the ground. Burns is said to have gathered himself afterwards. A Sunday evening update from Surrey stated that Henriques would be needing surgery for his broken jaw while Burns was awaiting stitches for ‘head and facial’ injuries.

#1 Ankit Keshri and Sourav Mondal

Ankit Keshri’s death sent shockwaves across the nation

A 20-year-old cricketer from Bengal (Ankit Keshri) passed away in tragic circumstances a couple of months back after suffering a collision with a teammate during East Bengal’s knockout fixture against Bhawanipore at Jadavpur University’s Salt Lake Campus ground.

The former Bengal Under-19 skipper and opening batsman had come onto the field only two overs earlier as the 12th man replacing Arnab Nandi when the incident occurred. Sourav Mondal, the bowler, had hastened towards cover in hopes of completing a caught-and-bowled, completely oblivious of Keshri running in from deep cover. Both collided head-on as Mondal’s knee crashed into Keshri’s head and neck region.

Keshri lay motionless on the ground with blood trickling from his mouth. He initially responded to Shibsagar Singh’s resuscitation efforts before being carried off to a local hospital in an ambulance. Three days in two different hospitals later, the promising cricketer succumbed to his injuries, the final blow being cerebral edema resulting in cardiac arrest.