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Phillip Hughes will remain unbeaten at 63 not out, forever!
Phillip Hughes, who would have been celebrating his 26th birthday on Sunday, will remain unbeaten at 63 runs, forever.
New Delhi: Phillip Hughes, who would have been celebrating his 26th birthday on Sunday, will remain unbeaten at 63 runs, forever.
The South Australia batsman died on Thursday, two days after he was hit on the neck by a bouncer from the New South Wales paceman Sean Abbott during a Sheffield Shield match in Sydney Cricket Ground.
At the time of the fateful incident, Hughes was batting on 63. After being hit by the ball, he retired hurt with the match abandoned subsequently.
Continuing the outpouring of tributes to Hughes, the Cricket Australia (CA) today decided to adjust the left-hander's final innings to show him on being 63 not out.
CA chief James Sutherland said, "It might seem like a little thing, but it's an important distinction. Phillip will forever remain 63 not out."
Yesterday, CA also retired Hughes' one-day international jersey number of 64 as a tribute to the batsman. Australia captain, Michael Clarke on Saturday confirmed that CA has agreed to their request to retire the number.
"Last night, I asked Cricket Australia if Hughesy’s Australian one-day international shirt number, 64, could be retired, to which they agreed. That means so much. His legacy of trying to improve each and every day will drive us for the rest of our lives," a tearful Clarke said at a press conference.
Hughes's funeral will take place at 8:30 IST on Wednesday in his home town of Macksville in northern New South Wales.
The tragedy left the nation and cricketing world mourning. The scheduled first Test match between the visiting Indian team and Australia for the Border-Gavaskar Trophy has already been postponed. The five-day match was slated to begin on December 4 at Gabba.
Hughes, who made his Test debut against Australia at Johannesburg in 2006, played 26 matches. In a promising short-lived career, he scored three centuries and seven fifties, at an average of 32.65.
He also made played 25 ODI matches for Australia, scoring two centuries and four fifties at an average of 35.91.