SYDNEY: Bowling all-rounder Sean Abbott displayed remarkable resilience in an emotional tribute to late Phillip Hughes on his 10th death anniversary here at Sydney Cricket Ground (SCG) on Wednesday.
A minute silence was observed to honour former Australian batter Hughes ahead of the Sheffield Shield match between New South Wales (NSW) and Tasmania.
Abbott, whose bouncer struck Hughes’s head during a Shield match in 2014, accompanied his NSW teammate in a minute silence.
“He was incredibly brave today,” NSW skipper Jack Edwards said after play.
Notably, Sean Abbott was given a choice to sit out of the aforementioned fixture, which scheduling coincided with the death anniversary of Hughes.
The all-rounder was visibly upset after the minute-long silence and some of his NSW teammates gave him a pat on the back as he wiped away tears with hands before rushing back to the dressing room.
For the unversed, right-handed batter Phillip Hughes, who represented Australia in 26 Tests and 25 ODIs, died in a hospital two days after the blow, aged 25.
"Phillip was a loving, humorous and an infectious person to be around," his family said in a statement, issued by Cricket Australia on Thursday.
"He always aimed to make those around him smile and enjoy the little things in life, where his beautiful smile would come to life.
"He shined bright even in the tough times, which is a testament to who he was as a person, and we loved everything about him.
"He was the light of our lives. Phillip had a profound love for his family and lived his life with respect to everyone around him."
"We'd like to thank (everyone) for supporting this endeavour and each person who worked tirelessly behind the scenes for creating a celebration of Phillip's life.”
Sohail Imran Sohail Imran is a senior reporter for Geo News.
