Call on Rogers tough but necessary

As the Australian players limbered up in Roseau on Monday for the penultimate training session before their first Test in almost five months, a small group of four were deep in conversation just to the side of the playing group.

Most casual cricket fans would have recognised three of the four men in an instant; coach Darren Lehmann, captain Michael Clarke and opener Chris Rogers.

But it was the fourth man of the quartet, team doctor Peter Brukner, whose opinion held the most sway in this discussion.

Brukner was informing the group that he had decided to rule Rogers out of the first Test against the West Indies, which starts on Wednesday.

It was a decision Brukner made alone and one that ten or even five years ago would likely have created some degree of push back from the trio.

But given extensive modern research that has revealed just how serious the damage caused by concussion can be, and the high esteem with which Dr Brukner is held, the decision was reluctantly accepted by all.

"There’s been a lot spoken about with concussion and as hard as it is on Chris, I think credit needs to go to Peter Brukner, our team doctor," Clarke said.

"He’s an expert in this field and he believes Chris has those symptoms and it wouldn’t be smart for him to take the field.

"So, look, I always want to win, I always love seeing Australian cricket have success.

"But at the end of the day I’d rather see the health and safety of the individual come first and foremost, and in this case that’s exactly what we’re doing and I think it’s a really smart decision.

"I’ll always back, and always have backed, the medical staff my whole career and in this instance it is no different.

"I think it takes courage for the doctor to make this decision, but credit to him, and we all support him 100 per cent."

Image Id: ~/media/F93CD43858244DB1B0A33347F933C32BChris Rogers inspects his helmet // Getty Images

As a world renowned sports doctor, whose previous experience includes stints with Liverpool Football Club, the Socceroos and the Australian Olympic Team, Dr Brukner knows that telling any athlete they won't be playing is one of the toughest jobs in any sport.

Indeed, Dr Brukner said Rogers had tried in vain to talk him around on Monday morning, "as they tend to do".

But Dr Brukner made no apologies for taking a hardline stance on a subject that, while more prevalent in the football codes, is still a serious issue for Cricket Australia.

"He was disappointed, obviously he was disappointed," Brukner said of delivering the news to Rogers.

"And I know it's not an insignificant thing to rule someone out of a Test match. We don't do this lightly.

"But my first priority and Cricket Australia's first priority is to the individual player and his health. And that's why we've made the decision.

"We used to believe that concussion was a relatively insignificant condition. But I think now all the research shows that we've got to take it much more seriously and Cricket Australia is similar to the football codes and we're adopting that more serious approach.

"Concussion is a significant injury. We know that if the symptoms and the various tests that we've done are indicators that if someone's not fully recovered then they shouldn't return to sport and that's the situation with Chris."

There wouldn't be many sporting teams who take matters such as this more seriously than this group of players, who were tragically jolted to the reality of their sport when Phillip Hughes passed away last November.

Last year, it was Rogers who seemingly spoke for everyone involved in cricket around the world when he said "mortality hadn't really been an issue in the game" up until that point.

Rogers was speaking after he was struck on the helmet while fielding at short leg during the second Test against India in Brisbane, only weeks after Hughes's passing.

It was then that the players had a discussion and were told that the team doctor, not the players or coaching staff, would have the final and only say about a player's suitability to take the field after being struck on the head.

It's a far cry from days gone by when players were often lauded for their bravery when they returned to the crease despite being effected by a knock to the head.

In 2006, captain Ricky Ponting feared he would have to physically restrain Justin Langer from returning to the field of play as Australia attempted to chase down a victory against South Africa just days after Langer had suffered a "significant concussion" (Australia eventually won the match by two wickets, ensuring Ponting didn't have to forcibly keep his teammate in the dressing-room).

Just last year South African allrounder Ryan McLaren batted on after being struck on the helmet by Mitchell Johnson, a blow that left him with blood trickling from his right ear.

But in the current climate, this group understand that playing so soon after a head knock is simply too big a risk to take.

"I think Chris is exactly like me. He wants to play, as I want him to play," Clarke said.

"But he also understands and respects that there is a lot more to it than just walking back out onto the field and playing again.

"As I’m sure the doc would have said, if he gets hit again who knows what the consequences are?

"And I don’t think anybody wants to see that happen for the sake of missing one game."