Cricket: Sean Abbott returns to competitive cricket
Tuesday 9 December 2014 09:46, UK
Fast bowler Sean Abbott has bowled for the first time since delivering the fateful ball that caused the death of Phillip Hughes two weeks ago.
Abbott was handed the ball in the 13th over on the first day of a four-day match between his New South Wales state side and Queensland at the Sydney Cricket Ground.
On the same ground on November 25, a short pitched ball bowled by Abbott struck Hughes on the neck; he lost consciousness and died in a Sydney hospital two days later aged 25.
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New South Wales and South Australia - the states for which Hughes played - had not played since that day, but resumed their first-class Sheffied Shield programmes on Tuesday.
Abbott, bowling as second change behind Australian pacemen Doug Bollinger and Mitchell Starc, was warmly applauded by spectators and bowled a bouncer with his fifth ball.
He went on to take two wickets and finished with figures of 2-54 from 15 overs as Queensland were bowled out for 268.
NSW captain Moises Henriques said over the weekend that Abbott had reacted well since attending Hughes' funeral last week, and he was taking comfort from the support received from players and fans around the world.
"He is coping pretty well and I guess from our point of view we are trying to expel his name from the tragedy a little bit," Henriques said.
"I don’t think he was any more at fault than any fast bowler who has ever bowled a bouncer in his career and we have been treating him just the same as any other player. That’s how Sean wants to be treated."
Former Australia fast bowler and current Yorkshire first-team coach Jason Gillespie told Sky Sports: “We don’t know what Abbott’s been feeling, even though we do know that he has been devastated by recent events.
“So it’s fantastic to see a young cricketer chasing his dream, getting back out there and playing with a bit of passion after such a terrible accident.”
