Cricket Australia makes neck guards mandatory against pacers despite top batters' refusal

All Australian batters (international and domestic) will have to wear neck guards when facing fast or medium-pace bowling from 1 October 2023 as Cricket Australia announced a mandatory rule on Thursday (24 September). The governing body clarified that this rule does not apply while facing spinners, or for wicketkeepers and close-in fielders. If any batter fails to do so, they will face sanction from the board.

The decision to mandate the rule comes a week after South African pacer Kagiso Rabada's bouncer hit Australia all-rounder Cameron Green on the side of his helmet during an ODI match. Green had to leave the field with a concussion. "Protecting the head and neck is extremely important in our sport," said CA's Head of Cricket Operations and scheduling, Peter Roach.

"The neck protector product has come a long way in recent years and the decision to make them mandatory comes off the back of a lot of advice and consultation with a wide range of experts and stakeholders," he added.

Steve Smith, David Warner among top players to refuse the use of neck guards 

The Australian Cricket Board recommended the use of neck protectors after the death of Phillip Hughes in 2014, but several top batters, including Steve Smith, David Warner and Usman Khawaja, have refused to wear them. Warner, who was in the playing 11 during the tragic incident of Hughes, had earlier written to the board that he would not wear them because he was uncomfortable.

"I do not and will not wear them," Warner wrote. "When I turn my head...wearing a StemGuard, it impedes my neck and restricts the movement of my neck when I turn around to face bowlers. I have tried a StemGuard and it digs into my neck. It is uncomfortable and is a distraction," he added.

On the other hand, Smith, who was hit by a Jofra Archer bouncer during the Lord's Test of the Ashes 2019 and missed the following match, said that he felt "claustrophobic" while wearing them. "I've tried them before and I tried them the other day when I was batting and I reckon my heart rate went up about 30 or 40 straight away. I just feel claustrophobic. I compare it to being stuck in an MRI scan machine," he said.