New Zealand's Mitchell McClenaghan took a cricket ball to the face in a scary injury during the first ODI (One Day International) against Pakistan in Wellington yesterday. He was batting against Pakistani bowler Anwar Ali and a bouncer somehow managed to find its way between the beak of his helmet and the face mask—the gap appears to be the exact size of the ball—and hit him square in the left eye. The infrared imaging at the end of the video is particularly nuts.McClenaghan's eye was left bloodied after the hit, but he did eventually get up and gather himself after doctors checked him out. He left the match and got stitches, but he will have minor cosmetic surgery for a hairline fracture above his eye. Nevertheless, he seems pretty upbeat about it.
Everything about this is pretty miraculous; from the ball actually squeezing itself through that tiny gap in the first place, to it not actually causing serious damage. McClenaghan will miss the second ODI later this week, however, and he might miss the final match on January 31, as well.[reddit]Thanks for all the concerns. Everything is as good as it can be just a few broken bones. Great win for the boys! pic.twitter.com/S9A2pZqETa
— Mitchell McClenaghan (@Mitch_Savage) January 25, 2016