Australia Women’s National Cricket Team vs India Women’s National Cricket Team Match: Players from India and Australia wore black armbands during their Women’s ODI World Cup 2025 semifinal on Thursday at the DY Patil Stadium in Navi Mumbai to pay tribute to 17-year-old Australian cricketer Ben Austin. Austin died after being hit on the neck during a training session at the Ferntree Gully Cricket Club in suburban Melbourne. The incident took place while he was reportedly facing an automatic bowling machine in the nets ahead of a Twenty20 match. He was rushed to the hospital in critical condition and placed on a ventilator but succumbed to his injuries.
Reports said Austin was wearing a helmet but did not have neck protection at the time of the accident. His death has drawn widespread grief and brought back memories of Australia batter Phil Hughes, who died in a similar incident in 2014.
The Ferntree Gully Cricket Club, where Austin played, expressed deep sorrow over his passing. "We are absolutely devastated by the passing of Ben, and the impacts of his death will be felt by all in our cricket community," the Ferntree Gully club said in a statement. "Our thoughts and prayers are with his family – Jace, Tracey, Cooper and Zach, his extended family, his friends and to all of those who knew Ben and the joy that he brought."
The International Cricket Council (ICC) also paid tribute to the young player. In a post on social media, the ICC said, “Australia and India are wearing black armbands in their #CWC25 semi-final as a tribute to teenage cricketer Ben Austin, who passed away following an accident while batting in the nets in Melbourne earlier this week. ICC’s thoughts are also with Ben’s family and friends.”
Australia won the toss and chose to bat first. India brought in Shafali Verma to replace the injured Pratika Rawal.
Playing XIs:
India Women: Smriti Mandhana, Shafali Verma, Amanjot Kaur, Harmanpreet Kaur (c), Jemimah Rodrigues, Richa Ghosh (wk), Deepti Sharma, Radha Yadav, Kranti Goud, Nallapureddy Charani, Renuka Singh Thakur.
Australia Women: Alyssa Healy (c & wk), Phoebe Litchfield, Ellyse Perry, Beth Mooney, Annabel Sutherland, Ashleigh Gardner, Tahlia McGrath, Sophie Molineux, Kim Garth, Alana King, Megan Schutt.
