News of Ben Austin’s death has rippled through Australian cricket – and well beyond – since the 17-year-old was struck in the neck by a ball during a net session at Ferntree Gully Cricket Club on Wednesday evening. His life support was turned off the following morning, and by Friday every major Australian match had paused to remember him.
Before the Australia-India T20I at a packed MCG, players, officials and representatives from Austin’s clubs formed a quiet circle, a single cap resting on a small plinth. Both teams, already wearing black armbands, observed a minute’s silence while Austin’s image filled the big screen. Similar scenes unfolded overnight at the women’s World Cup semi-final, where Australia and India again wore black bands.
State cricket followed suit. Sheffield Shield sides laid bats outside dressing-rooms, and Victoria and Tasmania players gathered at Junction Oval for another minute’s silence. Such gestures, though small, captured the game’s shared loss.
“This tragedy has taken Ben from us, but we find some comfort that he was doing something he did for so many summers – going down to the nets with mates to play cricket,” said his father, Jace Austin, in a family statement. “He loved cricket and it was one of the joys of his life.”
Cricket Victoria chief executive Nick Cummins offered similar perspective. “It makes you so proud to realise how connected the cricket community is and how much we look after each other … but it’s a shame that it’s these moments that remind you of that very fact,” he told reporters. Cummins went on to describe Austin as “the classic Aussie boy or girl who loved footy in the winter and cricket in the summer”.
Inside Ferntree Gully’s modest clubhouse, flowers, home-baked slices and a growing tangle of cricket bats have formed an informal memorial. Team-mate Liam Vertigan struggled for words. “He lived and breathed his cricket,” he said. “He was just well loved by us all, very, very polite, always with a smile on his face.”
The accident has inevitably revived debate over the use of sidearms – often called “wangers” – in community practice. A sidearm is a flexible plastic thrower that lets coaches propel the ball at high speed with minimal effort, effectively simulating fast bowling. Austin was wearing a helmet, but not a stem guard, the small attachment that protects the back of the neck. Stem guards are compulsory in Cricket Australia-sanctioned matches; at grassroots level they remain “strongly recommended”.
Cummins acknowledged the concern but urged patience. “I think the temptation in moments like this is to move to solution mode,” he said. “At the moment, our focus is around providing support and counselling for those people who experienced the trauma. There will be an appropriate time to review that and answer those questions.”
Cricket Australia and Cricket Victoria have confirmed counselling will be available to Austin’s family, team-mates and witnesses. The national board has also opened an incident review, expected to consult medical experts, coaches and equipment suppliers.
Practically, clubs are sure to revisit safety briefings. Some may restrict sidearm sessions to qualified coaches; others may insist on stem guards or additional neck protection. Sports medicine specialist Dr Katie Reynolds believes the conversation is overdue. “A sidearm can generate ball speeds comparable to professional quicks,” she said. “At junior level, that’s a significant risk, especially if players aren’t expecting the extra pace.”
The incident unavoidably recalls Phillip Hughes, who died in 2014 after being struck below the helmet while batting for South Australia. Hughes’ death prompted changes to helmet standards and routine concussion protocols. Whether Austin’s passing will spark equipment reform or simply reinforce existing guidelines remains to be seen, but the community sentiment is clear: another talented youngster has been lost far too soon.
For now, the cricket world is pausing, reflecting and offering what comfort it can. Matches will continue – they always do – yet the next time a coach reaches for a sidearm, or a young batter straps on a helmet, Austin’s story is likely to hover in the background: a reminder that even in a familiar suburban net, the game carries real risks alongside its many rewards.
