“It’s so bizarre. He’s right there before my eyes and then you realise he is gone,” said former India all-rounder Robin Singh.
Phillip Hughes, 25, who succumbed to an on-field head injury at a Sydney hospital on Thursday, represented Mumbai Indians in Indian Premier League-VI, where he spent quality time under Robin, a coach at the franchise.
“He was astute and so keen to learn and improve his game. Not just in Twenty20 cricket but the art of batsmanship. He was eager to move on to the next level,” remembered Robin.
Someone who grew up in a banana farm in New South Wales before moving to Sydney at the age of 18, Hughes was very much a country boy at heart.
“He was a simple lad and a lively character, popular in the side. And he had a sense of humour,” recalled Robin. Indeed, Hughes’ earthiness endeared him to many.
Now, the baggy green cap No 408 is no more.
A product of the system, the left-handed Hughes was a resounding success for Australia under-19 and the `A’ sides; he transcended barriers quickly.
At 19, he became the youngest batsman to notch up a century in the Pura Cup final. There was something about his game – not copybook but effective and entertaining – and persona – confident in a very Australian way – that demanded attention.
The baggy green was not far away. When it came, the cap suited his gum-chewing visage.
In his first series, against a lethal South African pace attack of Dale Steyn, Morne Morkel, Mkhaya Ntini and Jacques Kallis, Hughes made history. His115 and 160 in Durban, 2009, made him the youngest batsman to produce a hundred in each innings of a Test.
Hughes' technique did not please the purists. He was prone to slicing and slashing deliveries, and had a tendency to back away slightly before essaying the cut or the drives.
It was not long before Hughes was targeted with a mix of full length deliveries and short-pitched fliers from the quicks. The bowlers were sending down deliveries closer to his body, denying Hughes the width.
After a form slump, he struggled to hold a permanent place but made his presence felt from time to time. Hughes’ typically attacking unbeaten 86 in the Wellington Test, 2010, was a match-winning effort.
Then there was his fighting 81 not out at Nottingham in the Ashes series of 2013. An eye and reflex player, he strove to plug holes in his technique.
When Hughes travelled to India with the Australia team in 2013 for a four-Test series, this writer caught up with him at the IC-Guru Nanak ground, the venue for the two tour games ahead of the first Test in Chennai. He would be quick to flash his charming smile.
The Aussies were routed 4-0 in the series; Hughes’ best effort was a feisty 69 at Mohali.
After the tour, Hughes was signed up by Mumbai Indians for IPL season VI.
“The Aussies had a disastrous tour of India but he displayed a positive mind-set. I liked the spirit and the desire in the man,” said Robin. Hughes’ eyes reflected his passion.
Hughes played 26 Tests and made 1535 runs at 32.65. His 826 runs in 25 ODIs came at 35.91. In first class cricket, a lot of it was played on the sporting tracks down under against testing bowling, Hughes scored 9023 runs from 114 matches at 46.51.
Sadly, a promising career was cut short in the most unfortunate fashion. “I still cannot believe it. He will be terribly missed,” said Robin.
