Three years ago today sport, and the nation, lost a cherished son in Phillip Hughes, who tragically died after being struck in the neck while batting for South Australia at the age of just 25.
His passing left an indelible mark on the Australian cricket team, with countless tributes flowing.
Hughes was struck on the neck after missing a short ball while playing in a Sheffield Shield game on November 25th 2014, causing a rare but described sports-related blunt-force injury called a vertebral artery dissection, which lead to a subsequent subarachnoid haemorrhage. He collapsed on the field and received mouth-to-mouth resuscitation efforts and was transported to hospital, but died two days later on the morning of November 27th having never regained consciousness. Hughes was three days shy of his 26th birthday.
Despite wearing a helmet at the time, Hughes was struck on the neck below the ear – an area unprotected by standard cricket helmets – and a subsequent coronial inquest determined that nothing could have been done to avoid his passing, ruling that the injury was the result of a minuscule misjudgment.
Today, on the third anniversary of his passing, both players and fans at the Gabba paused to pay tribute to Hughes during the final session of the First Ashes Test, which Australia took home by a margin of ten wickets.
Hughes’ great mate David Warner looked skyward after ticking his own score over to 63 Not Out, the score that Hughes was on at the time his fatal injury occurred. Both Warner and fellow opener Cameron Bancroft wore black arm bands emblazoned with Hughes’ initials ‘PH‘, and the Gabba crowd applauded in tribute.
https://twitter.com/Kohlicious_/status/934945561790136320
David Warner with a tribute to his mate Phillip Hughes after reaching 63 not out this morning: https://t.co/NJTSv0eQsc #Ashes pic.twitter.com/aJy8hn1X8U
— cricket.com.au (@cricketcomau) November 27, 2017
In the stands, the English fans also marked the occasion, with the famous Barmy Army leading a chant of ‘There’s Only One Phillip Hughes‘ in a classy show of respect.
There’s only one Phillip Hughes. #408 #63notout pic.twitter.com/4HoIgPDzhj
— England’s Barmy Army 🏴🎺 (@TheBarmyArmy) November 27, 2017
Phillip Hughes, Test Player #408, always 63 not out. Still greatly missed.
Never forgotten #408 pic.twitter.com/XSKBCtKIia
— Cricket Australia (@CricketAus) November 26, 2017
