Australian cricketer Phil Hughes is in a critical condition after being smashed in the head with a cricket ball.
The distressing moment happened in the Sheffield Shield match between South Australia and New South Wales on Tuesday afternoon at the Sydney Cricket Ground. The Test-hopeful received a ball from bowler Sean Abbott, which bounced to hit him in the head before he could be seen staring at his feet and then collapsing to the ground face first.
After the traumatic bouncer, a cricket term for a ball that is pitched short so that it bounces on the pitch and up to chest or head height, Hughes was taken from the pitch on a stretcher before being rushed in an ambulance from the Sydney Cricket Ground to St Vincent's hospital.
We're told Phil Hughes is in a critical condition after being hit by a bouncer from Sean Abbott at the SCG @9NewsAUS pic.twitter.com/qmvVKBJeVr— Tom Steinfort (@tomsteinfort) November 25, 2014
Phil Hughes has been taken to a nearby hospital via ambulance. A full statement on his condition will be made once assessed by Doctors.— NSW Blues (@CricketNSWBlues) November 25, 2014
It is not uncommon for balls to get up to speeds of 150km/h, yet a cricketer being knocked out is rare.
The game was abandoned immediately. Hughes is currently undergoing neurosurgery and remains in an induced coma, according to Nine News.
