Cricket has been known to be a gentleman’s game for quite some time now. Yet verbal fights are commonly seen on the field due to the pressure of performing well, but due to the aggression and enthusiasm of the games, it has led to some fatalities on the field. Mentioned below is the list naming ten of them-:
1. Phillip Hughes
Phillip Hughes scored his first test century when he was only 20 years old; he was an Australian test player and ODI cricketer who played for South Australia and Worcestershire. Hughes missed a ball while batting, and it struck him in the neck; he suffered a ruptured artery which led to a brain hemorrhage. This case was termed by doctors as one of the rarest kinds of accidents, and the first one in the history of cricket. The player passed away in 2014.
2. Darryn Randall
Darryn was a right-handed batsman and wicket-keeper who played for South Africa. The accident happened, in 2013 at a domestic match when Randall was trying to pull a shot and the ball struck his head. The player collapsed and was immediately taken to the hospital, but was long gone even before arrival.
3. Zulfikar Bhatti
Bhatti was a rising star cricketer from Sukkar in Sindh, Pakistan; and always dreamt about playing for Pakistan national team one day. He was only 22 years old when the incident happened. Zulfikar was playing a domestic game in 2013 when he was hit in the chest by the ball and was soon rushed to the hospital. The player was declared dead on arrival.
4. Richard Beaumont
In 2012, just a day after celebrating his five-wicket haul with his fast bowling, Richard blacked out on the pitch from a suspected heart attack. The cricketer was airlifted to Birmingham’s Queen Elizabeth Hospital but couldn’t survive and was shortly declared dead.
5. Wasim Raja
Raja was a British Pakistani school teacher, referee, cricket coach, and cricketer who played 54 ODIs and 57 Tests for the Pakistani National Cricket Team from 1973 to 1985. He died on the pitch while playing in a 50 over the competition in Surrey. Wasim first complained of uneasiness and then collapsed on the field, succumbing to a massive heart attack.
6. Raman Lamba
Lamba was an Indian cricket player who had played four Tests and 32 ODIs as a batsman. Raman was struck on the temporal bone while fielding during a match in Dhaka; he suffered from a severe brain hemorrhage and went into coma three days after the accident.
7. Ian Folley
Ian was a right-handed batsman and left-arm bowler who played for England; the player got hit below the eye in 1993 during a domestic match for Derbyshire against Workington. Folley was safely admitted to the hospital, where he was under an anesthetic, and that’s when he suffered a heart attack and died.
8. Wilf Slack
Slack was batting in a match in Banjul when he suddenly collapsed; he had previously suffered four blackouts, but even after several tests, the doctors could not diagnose the cause of death. Wilf Slack was an English cricketer, who played in three Test matches and two ODIs for England in 1986.
9. Abdul Aziz
Abdul was a Pakistani cricketer who was born in Karachi, Sind. He was a wicket-keeper and opening batsman who also played eight first-class matches for Karachi. Aziz was struck over the heart by a slow off-break from Didwar Awan, which led to him falling on the ground and not being able to regain consciousness, He died on the way to the hospital.
10. George Summers
George was an English cricketer who played first-class cricket for Nottinghamshire. He was playing a domestic match against MCC at Lord’s when he was struck on the head with the ball. Basic first-aid was provided on the field. George never went to the hospital after the injury, which led to him dying four days later.
