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by Matt Goss
MELBOURNE, Nov. 4 (Xinhua) -- An inquest into the 2014 death of Australian cricketer Phillip Hughes has declared there was no malicious intent involved in the incident, which came about as a result of a "miniscule misjudgement" by the batsman.
James Sutherland, CEO of Cricket Australia, said that he would act on the findings of the inquest to ensure the safety of all cricketers going forward "as soon as practical."
Sutherland, speaking at a press conference in Perth, said his organization had "a responsibility and a duty to make sure something like this doesn't happen again."
Hughes, 25, was struck in the neck by a bouncer, a short-pitched delivery which rises to head-height and is primarily used as an intimidation tactic in the game, while playing for South Australia (SA) against his native New South Wales (NSW) on Nov. 25, 2014.
Despite wearing a helmet, Hughes collapsed and was taken to a Sydney hospital where he was placed in an induced coma before dying from his injuries on Nov. 27.
Michael Barnes, the state coroner for NSW, said Hughes was targeted by short-pitched bowling, which he was widely known to have struggled against due to an unorthodox batting technique, but there was no evidence that the ball in question was delivered with malicious intent.
"Neither the bowler nor anyone else was to blame for the tragic outcome," Barnes said on Friday.
"I conclude no failure to enforce the laws of the game contributed to his death.
"He could have avoided the ball by ducking under it but such was his competitiveness, he sought to make runs from it.
"A miniscule misjudgment or a slight error of execution caused him to miss the ball which crashed into his neck with fatal consequences.
"Even the best can't perform perfectly all the time."
Barnes said that even if Hughes was wearing the most advanced protective equipment available at the time it would not have protected the area of his neck where he was struck.
In delivering his verdict, the coroner took the opportunity to criticize the widespread practice of sledging, whereby players from the fielding team make offensive remarks to batsmen in order to distract them, saying it was an "ugly underside" of the game.
"The repeated denials of any sledging having occurred in the game in which Phillip Hughes was injured were difficult to accept," Barnes said.
"Members of Phillip's family considered that the spirit of the game had been disrespected by an opposition bowler who they alleged made threats of violence towards Phillip or his batting partner.
"That was denied by the bowler in question and the batting partner but there was other evidence contradicting those denials and supporting the family's claims."
Barnes concluded his findings by addressing Hughes' family, saying that he hoped the changes to the sport to improve safety would be of some comfort to them in the future.
"As acknowledged at the outset, the family's grief at losing their much-loved son and brother was exacerbated by their belief that unfair play had contributed to his death," he said.
"In the course of this inquest, they have heard from independent experts, high-ranking cricket officials and some of the players who were on the field with Phillip when he played his last game of cricket.
"Clearly, they do not agree with all that they heard, however, it is hoped that they accept the compelling evidence that the rules were complied with.
"Phillip was excelling at the crease as he so often did and that his death was a tragic accident.
"Nothing can undo the source of their never-ending sorrow but hopefully in the future, the knowledge that Phillip was loved and admired by so many and that his death has led to changes to make cricket safer will be of some comfort."
