It all ended in smiles, but when Sydney Sixers opener Riki Wessels was cracked in the head by a 144.7 km/h delivery in his side’s Big Bash match there was a sharp intake of breath all around the Adelaide Oval. The tragic death of Australian batsman Philip Hughes last November when he was struck in the head by a similar ball from fast bowler Sean Abbott is still fresh in the memory, and since then there has been a lot of debate and controversy over the kind of helmets being used today. In this instance Wessels’ helmet did its job. The 29-year-old was struck on Saturday night by a bouncer from Adelaide paceman Kane Richardson in the fourth over with the ball getting lodged between the peak of his helmet and the protective face grill.
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Sydney Sixers opener Riki Wessels gets cracked in the head by a 144.7 km/h bouncer from Adelaide paceman Kane Richardson
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The ball got lodged between the peak of Wessels' helmet and the protective face grill
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It brought back memories of the tragic incident when Australian batsman Philip Hughes died after getting hit by a similar ball
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Immediately afterwards a relieved Wessels took off his helmet and kissed it gratefully
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Later in the match a blistering delivery from Brett Lee smashed Craig Simmons' bat
The 38-year-old Sydney Sixers star will retire at the end of his side's Big Bash campaign, but he stunned @placeholder's Simmons with a 149km/h yorker in the opening over, snapping his bat in two.