Callum Ferguson, who has played 30 ODIs and a Test for Australia, recalls the shuddering moment when he saw his South Australian teammate Travis Head hit by a speeding car. It was a decade ago, and Head had just waved to Ferguson outside a pub in Adelaide, and was looking to find his mate’s car when he was hit.
“I feared the worst when I reached him. The car had taken an awfully long time to stop and by the time I got to Trav, he was unconscious. Frankly, I thought that was it. Luckily, by the time the ambulance came, he was conscious though not quite there yet.” Ferguson and his mates took Head to the hospital, and he remembers the moment in the hospital room after the doctors had done their thing. “It’s almost as if nothing had happened. I was still shaking a bit but he went, ‘mate, my head is going to look better now, won’t it?’ He was heavily stitched up, wrapped up in bandages at that point.
Australia’s Travis Head celebrates after scoring a century during the day two of the second cricket test match between Australia and India at the Adelaide Oval in Adelaide, Australia, Saturday, Dec. 7, 2024. (AP Photo/James Elsby) 
India’s captain Rohit Sharma, left, and Australia’s Travis Head shake hands during the presentation ceremony of the second cricket test match between Australia and India at the Adelaide Oval in Adelaide, Australia. (AP) 
Australia’s Travis Head celebrates after taking the catch to dismiss India’s Mohammed Siraj during the day three of the second cricket test match between Australia and India at the Adelaide Oval in Adelaide, Australia. (AP) 
Australia’s Travis Head is bowled out by India’s Mohammed Siraj during the day two of the second cricket test match between Australia and India at the Adelaide Oval in Adelaide, Australia. (AP) 
Australia’s Travis Head celebrates after scoring a century during the day two of the second cricket test match between Australia and India at the Adelaide Oval in Adelaide, Australia.