In Australia the players of cricket are in mourning after the death of a 17 year old athlete during training hit by a ball launched with a device called ‘wanger’. The victim, Ben Austin, lost his life before a local T20 match in Melbourne last Wednesday. He was wearing a helmet, but reportedly he wasn’t wearing a neck guard.
The episode brought to mind the case of cricket champion Phillip Hughes who died in 2014 after being hit in the neck by a ball during a Sheffield Shield national championship match. The teams from Victoria and Tasmania displayed their cricket bats as a sign of respect, wore black armbands and observed a minute’s silence while the image of Ben Austin was projected on a big screen, before filming the national championship match in Melbourne.
Same scenes occurred in Perth, where Western Australia faced South Australia. In Mumbai, both India and Australia wore black armbands during the semi-final of the Women’s World Cup on Thursday. “Thank you to the Indian team for joining us in wearing the black armbands in tribute to Ben Austin, a young man from Melbourne who tragically lost his life playing the game we all love,” the Australian team said.
“We send love to Ben’s friends, family and fellow cricketers.”
Flowers and cricket bats were laid at Ferntree Gully Cricket Club, where the incident occurred. “It’s a source of pride to realize how close-knit the cricket community is and how much we care for each other,” said Nick Cummins, director of Cricket Victoria. “It doesn’t take much imagination to put yourself in the shoes of the Austin family.” Austin’s death had global resonance: England’s Barmy Army shared a GoFundMe page created to help the family.
“Rest in peace, Ben Austin, you will never be forgotten,” wrote the official group of fans, who will travel to Australia this month for the Ashes Test match series. Former England captain Michael Vaughan also paid tribute, as did the England and Wales Cricket Board, which said it was “deeply saddened”. “Gone too soon. My thoughts are with his family and closest friends,” Vaughan wrote on X.