Any player who plays cricket requires a lot of strength and stamina. Players often suffer injuries during the match or after the match because of the impact and fast pace of the game. Because of such injuries, these players often also undergo multiple surgeries. There have been several instances where we have seen players suffer from injuries on-field. Some players have had such critical injuries that they needed immediate medical attention. There also have been players who have lost their lives while playing. We have a list of the players who have suffered terrible injuries on-field.
1. Anil Kumble
Anil Kumble was placed higher in the batting order than wicketkeeper Ajay Ratra during the third day of the fourth Test between India and West Indies in May 2002. Mervyn Dillon quickly welcomed him to the crease with a short-pitched pitch. This delivery directly hit Kumble’s jaw and blood was coming out. The next day Kumble found out that his jaw was broken. Even after that, he came out on the field with a bandage wrapped around his face and bowled for 14 overs. Cricket fans all over the globe saluted him for this.
2. Kusal Perera
Shannon Gabriel's in-famous across-the-line slog during the third test match against the West Indies at Bridgetown in 2018 sent the ball soaring to the boundary. Perera, who was positioned at long-on, leaped to stop the ball and caught it, but because of his momentum, he fell chest-first onto the pointed advertising boards set up beyond the ropes. He was immediately attended to by the Sri Lankan medical staff, who then had him taken away on a stretcher for more care. He could not play the rest of the match.
3. Craig Kieswetter
On July 12, 2014, as Kieswetter was playing for Somerset against Northampton shire, a bumper from David Willey to his helmet, and the ball's speed allowed it to slip through the gap. He suffered a fractured cheekbone and a broken nose.
4. Moises Henriques And Rory Burns
Burns and Henriques, both Surrey players competing against Sussex in the T20 Blast at Arundel, ran in for a catch. Unable to control their speed to avoid colliding with each other, they both ran in from great distances and were motivated by the desire to take the catch. However, this led to a huge collision. Burns' knee impacted Henriques, breaking his jaw three times, while Burns also suffered injuries to his face and neck.
5. Mark Boucher
When South Africa played Somerset in a tour match in Taunton in July 2012, former South Africa wicketkeeper Mark Boucher was struck by bail and sustained a gash to his left eyeball. Imran Tahir, a leg-spinner, delivered a ball that struck Boucher in the face and injured him. The 35-year-old was forced off the field with blood flowing from his eye. The eye injury that led the former South Africa wicketkeeper to declare his international retirement that same week resulted in the loss of the lens, iris, and pupil.
6. Philip Hughes
A rampaging Phil Hughes on 63 playing for South Australia on his old home field, the SCG, was struck by a Sean Abbott bouncer on the back of his neck after missing a pull stroke. This incident served as a virtual audition for inclusion in the team to face India in the home summer. Despite receiving prompt medical care from the best facilities, he died from a vertebral artery dissection that caused a subarachnoid hemorrhage.
7. Steve Waugh – Jason Gillespie
Steve Waugh and his team traveled to the subcontinent for a Test series against Sri Lanka, having just won the 1999 ICC World Cup. The Australians' series, however, got off to a bad start when their then-captain Steve Waugh cracked his nose after a strange fielding mishap with fast bowler Jason Gillespie during the first Test in Kandy. Gillespie shattered his leg and was unable to continue the tour because of it.
8. Saba Karim
Syed Saba Karim, a former wicketkeeper for India, had a severe eye injury in the 2000 Asia Cup. In the first game, a leg-spinner Anil Kumble delivery that deflected off the pad of Bangladeshi batsman Habibul Bashar injured him in the right eye. Karim was taken to the hospital with retinal edema and inflammation, but complications developed as a result of glaucoma, and an increase in intraocular pressure. He underwent glaucoma surgery.
9. Gary Kirsten
Shoaib Akhtar left this former South Africa starting quarterback with severe injuries. In a 2003 Test match, Shoaib Akhtar, who was running in full force, produced a brief delivery that Kirsten attempted to hook. He completely missed the ball, which struck his cheek after being stuck in the visor. After taking off his helmet, Kirsten discovered that his left eye had been gashed, and there was blood all over. He broke his nose and required ten stitches in his eye.
10. Mark Vermeulen
Zimbabwe's Mark Vermeulen suffered a skull fracture in 2004 while batting against India in Brisbane during a triangular series. When the 24-year-old top-edged a bouncer from Pathan, the ball pierced his helmet between the peak and visor, striking him above the right eye. After being transported to a hospital in Brisbane, a depressed skull fracture in Vermeulen was discovered.
