Young cricketer dies after hit in chest while batting

A young British club cricketer has died after being hit in the chest by a ball while batting.

Bavalan Pathmanathan, playing for Manipay Parish Sports Club in division three of the British Tamil League in Surrey, received the blow on the weekend.

He was given CPR on the field and rushed to hospital in a "life-threatening condition", but later died.

His club released this statement on their Facebook page: "Our cricketer Bavalan Pathmanathan is no longer with us. He was hit by the ball on his chest while batting. Our club was totally shocked by his death at this young age."

The man batting with Pathmanathan at the time described the incident to Sri Lanka's Colombo Mirror.

"When he received the hit I asked from the other end if he is alright. He gave a thumbs-up and nodded to indicate he was alright, while pressing his chest," the teammate said.

"He took a couple of steps behind the stumps and collapsed. He was such a talented and composed cricketer and a darling friend of all of us. Every one of us is going through terrible pain as a result of this terrible loss."

Surrey chief executive Richard Gould said the whole country is in mourning.

"Everyone at the club has been deeply saddened to learn of Bavalan's death and would like to extend their sympathies to his family, friends and everyone who knew him from within the community of cricket," he said in a report in The Guardian.

The tragedy comes nearly a year since the death of Aussie cricketer Phillip Hughes, who was struck in the neck while playing for South Australia in the Sheffield Shield.