Mitch Marsh has worn a scary blow on the back of his neck on a day where he had already been forced to change into a replacement helmet.
Optus Stadium’s cracking pitch has created several headaches for Australian batters over the past two days of the first Test against Pakistan, with Steve Smith, Marnus Labuschagne and Usman Khawaja all being struck on their arms or hands.
WATCH THE VIDEO ABOVE: Mitch Marsh lucky to laugh off blow to the neck.
Watch, Stream & Catch Up with Australia’s Home of Cricket on 7plus >>
And Marsh copped two unfortunate hits to the head on Sunday, the second proving just why players should accept all the additional safety measures they can.
Marsh attempted to pull Pakistan debutant Khurram Shahzad in the 61st over of Australia’s second innings but the skidding delivery caught him off guard and caught him on his neck.
“Ouch,” Alison Mitchell said on Channel 7.
Marsh’s immediate reaction to smile belied the noise heard when ball struck helmet — and the fear that set in among Australian greats in the commentary box.
“He’s okay but I thought that was a serious one,” Greg Blewett said.
“He’s fine but jeez, that’s just reared up again.”
The helmet was checked over by officials — as is now mandatory after a strike — while replays showed how lucky Marsh was that the ball missed his neck.
“That’s why they’re wearing those guards now at the back of the helmet,” Blewett said.
“That’s just definitely bounced a lot more than what he thought it would. The great thing is he’s okay.”
Matthew Hayden said: “He got very close to it, too close for comfort in my view, and thank goodness there has been some innovation in the helmet designs because that plummeted right into the area of concern.”
Additional protection was retrofitted to helmets in the wake of Australian batsman Philip Hughes’s death in 2014.
Hughes died two days after he was struck on the back of the neck by a ball during a Sheffield Shield game, causing a rare brain injury.
Neck guards were initially recommended by Cricket Australia but some players, Steve Smith and David Warner among them, chose not to use them citing comfort.
But CA finally mandated that Australian players must wear the guards from October 1 this year.