Bhuvneshwar Kumar hits umpire Paul Reiffel on the back of his head with a throw

Despite all the improvements in safety equipments for batsmen, which has made shot-making so easy and without too many risks, umpires are still vulnerable as they aren’t afforded anywhere near the same amount of protection on the field.

And that was evident in the fourth Test between India and England after lunch on day one, as umpire Paul Reiffel was hit by a throw from the deep, after he tried unsuccessfully to get away from the path of the throw. The Australian umpire looked dazed and was taken off the field and was replaced by Marais Erasmus before being taken to the hospital.

UPDATE: Reiffel was taken to the hospital and a CT scan was done, which was clear. Although he is at the ground, he has been advised to take rest today as a precaution. Marais Erasmus took the Australian’s place on the field while C Shamsuddin became the third umpire.

It all happened in the 49^th over of the England’s innings with the score at 166/2 after Keaton Jennings clipped a length ball on the pads from Ravichandran Ashwin past the square leg umpire and into the hands of Bhuvneshwar Kumar. As the batsmen were just strolling through for a single, the fast bowler just lobbed the ball gently towards the direction of the keeper.

Extra Cover: Follow all the action from the fourth Test

Unfortunately for Reiffel, the ball didn’t have enough pace to get to the keeper and instead hit him on the back of his head, as he was trying to avoid being hit. As he was facing the pitch and not the direction from which the ball was coming from, he couldn’t have foreseen how the ball was going to come towards him.

He immediately went down and the England physio and doctor immediately rushed to the scene after Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Cheteshwar Pujara got to square leg to ensure that the umpire wasn’t badly hurt.

Australian umpire was hit on the back of his head

An innocuous throw from the deep ended up causing what looked like serious harm as Bhuvneshwar’s gentle lob hit the back of his Paul Reiffel’s head. Although the former Australian fast bowler-turned umpire was able to walk off the pitch, it seemed as though he was dazed and not completely alright.

The players immediately took drinks as Reiffel got some medical attention on the field after sitting up and eventually being taken off the field. His departure meant that there was a reshuffle in the officials which ended with third umpire, Marais Erasmus walking out onto the field taking Reiffel’s place.

WATCH: How Bhuvneshwar Kumar hit Paul Reiffel

Although this was a long interval and the third umpire is even more important with the added responsibility of DRS reviews, common sense prevailed, as Reiffel was rightly taken off the pitch. The arrival of the South African umpire also brought huge cheers from the crowd as the game finally resumed with England in control after winning the toss and electing to bat first.

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