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Related: Culture Forums, Support ForumsDeath by Cricket?
In 1751, Frederick, The Prince of Wales and father of George III, died at the age of 44 from a burst abscess in his lungs. Some feel that it was blow to the chest he received from a cricket ball whilst he was playing a match at Cliveden that precipitated his demise.
Pictured: Frederick, Prince of Wales, and his sisters. 1733. Philip Mercier.
Post script: What is not pictured in this painting is the fact that Frederick and his sisters had a great antipathy toward each other. He was not even speaking to his sister, Anne (at the harpsichord), at the time this portrait was made.
Tuesday Afternoon
(56,912 posts)SwissTony
(2,560 posts)Australian batsman Philip Hughes died in November last year after being struck on the head. A couple of days later, an umpire in Israel was hit in the face and died. Umpires in cricket are very much "in the firing line" and do not wear protective gear.
Violet_Crumble
(35,977 posts)And it includes a heart attack on the field that wasn't due to a cricket injury. For a game that's been around so long, it's a surprisingly short list...
Phil Hughes (Australia, 25) 2014
The Australia batsman was struck on the head by a bouncer during the match between South Australia and New South Wales. He suffered a ruptured artery and required mouth-to-mouth resuscitation on the boundary, before being rushed to hospital. Hughes succumbed to his injuries two days later.
Darryn Randall (South Africa, 32) 2013
Randall was competing in a South African domestic match when he was hit on the side of the head when attempting a pull shot. The wicketkeeper-batsman collapsed and was immediately rushed to hospital, but he could not be revived upon arrival.
Zulfiqar Bhatti (Pakistan, 22) 2013
The Pakistani player was struck in the chest by the ball while batting during a domestic game in his homeland, and he collapsed to the ground. Despite being taken to hospital from the venue in Saukkur, Bhatti was pronounced dead on arrival.
Richard Beaumont (England, 33) 2012
Beaumont has celebrated a five-wicket haul earlier that day, but collapsed on the field after suffering a suspected heart attack. The fast-bowler was airlifted to Birminghams Queen Elizabeth hospital but was pronounced dead shortly after his arrival.
Alcwyn Jenkins (England, 72) 2009
Jenkins was umpiring a league match in Swansea when he struck on the head by the ball after a fielder had thrown it in Jenkins direction accidentally. Jenkins was airlifted to hospital but did not recover from his injuries.
Wasim Raja (Pakistan, 54) 2006
Raja represented Pakistan during his playing career and went on to become an ICC match referee. He suffered a heart attack when playing for Surrey Over 50s at Marlow in Buckinghamshire, having played 57 Test matches and 54 ODIs for his country.
Raman Lamba (India, 38) 1998
The former India international was hit on the head while fielding during a club match in Dhaka. Standing at short-leg close to the batsman, the opener sustained serious brain injuries and went into a coma three days after the incident before being pronounced dead. As well as India, Lamba represented Ireland in unofficial ODI matches.
Ian Folley (England, 30) 1993
Folley had been tipped for an England call-up before a left-arm injury saw him retire from the game. He would return in 1991, but was hit below the eye in a freak accident while batting in a domestic match for Derbyshire against Workington. While under anaesthetic in hospital, Folley suffered a heart attack and was pronounced dead.
Wilf Slack (England, 34) 1989
Slack, a left-handed opener who represented Middlesex and England, suddenly collapsed and died during a match in Banjul, the capital of Gambia. Slack had suffered four blackouts while out in the field in previous matches, but despite doctors carrying out tests they were unable to diagnose the cause of his death. His passing represented the first recorded death in cricket in 30 years.
Abdul Aziz (Pakistan, 18) 1959
Aziz was playing as a wicketkeeper in a domestic match in Karachi, Pakistan. He was hit in the chest while batting, and was declared dead on arrival when he arrived at a nearby hospital.
Andy Ducat (England, 56) 1942
Ducat made a single appearance for England during his career, but the batsman suffered a heart attack during a game at Lords, where he collapses and died.
George Summers (England, 25) 1870
Summers was struck on the head while batting for Nottinghamshire against the MCC at Lords. He initially appeared to recover from the injury and didnt go to hospital, instead returning home to Nottingham by train, but died from the effects of his injury four days later.
http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/cricket/phil-hughes-dead-list-of-players-who-have-tragically-died-on-the-cricket-pitch-9886460.html
malthaussen
(17,216 posts)... he took a mighty cut at a pitch and suffered a ruptured abdominal hernia. But you'll be glad to know he hit a home run.
-- Mal