XtraTime Web Desk: The cricket world held their breath as the Sri Lankan openner Dimuth Karunaratne was hit in the back of the neck by a bouncer from Australian pacer Pat Cummins bouncer.
Karunaratne couldn’t get out of the way. it missed the helmet and struck him at the back of his head. Even the Australia doctor is out there with Karunaratne. They’re strapping him onto a stretcher. He seemed to be talking though as he never lost his consciousness.
“He has been taken to hospital,” she said. “It was quite distressing at the time. His dad came around and was visibly upset, his sister came as well. They’ve gone to hospital in a separate car to support Karunaratne. The manager from Sri Lanka was also with him.” Fox sports cricket correspondent Neroli Meadows reported.
After roughly 10 minutes of laying on the pitch Karunaratne was lifted onto the stretcher with a neck brace on. As he was loaded onto the stretcher Cummins was quick to check in on his opponent.
The Sri Lankan openner was close to score half century as his team started well.
commentator James Brayshaw said it was “raw” for the cricket community after a bouncer led to Phil Hughes death on the field in a Sheffield Shield match in November 2014.
“It is all a bit flattening, isn’t it?” he said. “No-one likes to see, in any sport, anyone injured. It is all pretty raw for us in the cricket family, isn’t it?”