Cricket helmets redesigned after Phil Hughes death

The batsman's death last year has pushed the helmet company to redesign helmets to make it more safer.

After the death of Australian cricketer Phillip Hughes, a British-based firm has designed a cricket helmet aimed at preventing another tragic death like that. The 25-year-old batsman died when he was struck on the back of the neck by a short-pitched delivery off Sean Abott in Sydney during a Sheffield Shield game.

Hughes playing for South Australia against New South Wales died in hospital two days later. He was wearing a Masuri helmet, collapsed immediately. The incident was described as a “freak” by medical experts. Hampshire-based manufacturer Masuri has given the BBC an exclusive look at its prototype helmet, which features extra protection at the rear.

After his death, the company began investigating a possible redesign and have introduced a ‘stemguard’, a device made of foam and a rubber-like compound that clips onto the back of a helmet. According to the company, Masuri provide “the most widely used helmet in Professional Cricket”. Design consultant Alan Meeks believes it will be both light and robust enough to prevent serious injury.

“This arrangement of the foam and honeycomb gives as much protection as a hard helmet. Even though it moves around and will touch the player when the ball hits them, it will absorb a significant amount of energy,” he said.

The International Cricket Council (ICC) has raised its recommendations for helmet safety standards in recent years. But with the advent of Twenty20 (T20) format, batsmaen are encouraged for greater range of strokes which is risky.

Managing Director of Masuri said, “That tragic event definitely had an impact on the public. I don’t think there was a helmet on the market which would have protected Phillip. There had been some talk of protection to that area in the past, but it had been a footnote.”

The “stemguard” has been tested extensively in a laboratory while it awaits production. Masuri say they have consulted cricket boards throughout the design process. A patent for the product is pending but its introduction in matches will depend on players’ desire to wear the redesigned helmets.