5 Cricketers who had near-death experiences

Cricket players participate in a popular sport that has never been immune to controversy. The players on the national teams are idolised and have cult followings. This causes us to forget that the players are mortal beings just like us and are not invincible. They have also experienced near-death experiences. Such incidents are not new to the cricket world. Several cricket players have encountered similar circumstances, yet they have survived to live another day. Cricket players have survived near-death situations in the following five cases:

1. Andrew Flintoff

Former England cricketer Andrew Flintoff went through a near-fatal Top Gear crash in December 2022. The 47-year-old's Morgan Super 3 car toppled at 130 mph at Dunsfold Aerodrome, causing severe facial injuries and fractured ribs. As a result, the BBC paid £9 million in compensation, and Top Gear was suspended indefinitely.

Rob Key, England men's cricket director, invited Flintoff to make an inconspicuous appearance at the 2023 Ashes as part of his recuperation process. Since then, he has hosted ITV's relaunched darts program Bullseye and served as head coach of the Northern Superchargers in the Hundred and England Lions.

2. Guy Whittall

Some claim to have escaped death at least once. Guy Whittall, a former cricket player for Zimbabwe, is likely one of the few people who can claim to have done it twice. The first was in 2013, when he slept under his bed with a 165 kg Nile crocodile at Humani Ranch. Whittall would then have his second near-death experience around eleven years later. The Grim Reaper showed up to him this time as a leopard. Had it not been for his faithful dog, Chikara, who assisted in removing the leopard from him, his wounds might have been worse.

3. Wasim Akram

For more than a decade, there has been much discussion about the safety of Pakistani cricket players. And when Akram had an accident in Karachi, things might have been worse. Akram's car was struck by a speeding motorist on his approach to the national stadium.

However, the driver shot at Akram's car and ran away when he was requested to get out. Akram could have easily died from the bullet, and cricket would have lost a legend. Although the pacer was fortunate to have avoided serious injuries, he undoubtedly encountered a situation that could have ended his life.

4. Muttiah Muralitharan

Muttiah Muralitharan almost avoided death during the devastating tsunamis that ravaged South Asia and took over 21,000 lives. Along with his manager, Muralitharan was in Galle, a seaside city in the south, to give the bats to the less fortunate kids. The waves struck shortly after they departed their town, just 20 minutes later.

In the last century, this earthquake ranked as the sixth largest. Additionally impacted were Sri Lanka, Indonesia, India, Thailand, Malaysia, the Maldives, and the Andaman Islands.

5. Rishabh Pant

Rishabh Pant, an Indian batsman and wicketkeeper, just avoided a fatal traffic collision on the Delhi-Dehradun highway in December 2022. Locals and a bus driver reportedly assisted Rishabh Pant after he was involved in an accident in 2022. Rishabh Pant was unknown at the time to the locals. 

They assisted the vehicle accident victim and took him to a local hospital, demonstrating the epitome of humanity. Later, Rishabh Pant expressed gratitude to those who came to his aid and saved him like angels. When the disaster occurred, he was at the height of his testing career.

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