‘Bats out for Benny’: teenager killed by cricket ball honoured amid debate over neck guards

Australia’s cricket community have begun to put their bats out in a gesture to remember teenage cricketer Ben Austin after he was killed by a ball hitting his neck in a practice session, in an incident in Melbourne on Tuesday described as similar to the death of former Test player Phillip Hughes in 2014.

The 17-year-old was wearing a helmet but not a neck guard, and while the incident is likely to trigger calls to make such protection mandatory at the community level – as it already is among elite players – cricket officials said the priority must be around supporting Austin’s family and the boy who threw the ball with a training tool known as a sidearm or “wanger”.

Cummins confirmed Austin was not wearing a neck guard, which has become a contentious issue in cricketing circles since Hughes’s death. Cricket Australia considered but decided against mandating neck protectors for community cricket in 2023.

The cricket executive said a full investigation into the incident would occur, but now was not the time for kneejerk decisions. “The temptation in moments like this is to move to solution modes,” Cummins said. “At the moment, our focus is around providing support and counselling for those people who experienced the trauma.”

“It’s often a response to a tragedy that people feel like they need to do something straight away. There will be a time to do something, we just need to make sure that we focus on the people who are directly impacted in the immediate time.”

Safety measures have been introduced since Hughes’s death that now require all batters facing fast or medium-pace bowling in Cricket Australia-sanctioned competitions to wear both a helmet that meets the latest standard and a neck protector.

While the same rules apply for helmets in community cricket, junior and grassroots competitions have avoided the mandate for neck protectors, which are seen within some circles as restrictive and uncomfortable. There are also no explicit requirements for safety equipment when facing sidearms.

The governing body issued guidelines for community cricket in 2023, “strongly recommending” that everyone wear a neck protector alongside a helmet, however it stopped short of a mandate. Its own frequently asked questions document covered why there was no mandate.

“CA recognises that there needs to be a transition period for participants to develop understanding about how to play with neck protectors, fit and measure them so they are appropriate to play in, and the potential cost associated with them,” it stated.

A leading neck protector known as Stemguard costs $70 for adults and $45 for children and clips on to the back of helmets.

Cricket Australia chair, Mike Baird, flagged on Thursday that the rules would be reviewed. “Clearly there are things that we have to learn from this, but right now we are concerned about the family and trying to support them in every way,” he said.