Langer waits for full health clearance

Justin Langer is not the only one being tested after he was concussed while batting in his 100th match against South Africa last month. Langer's helmet, which was struck as the batsman turned on a Makhaya Ntini bouncer, has also been sent to the manufacturer for investigation in a bid to make future models safer.

Langer, who was unable to continue in his milestone match after being hit from the first ball of the innings at Johannesburg, gave the helmet to Cricket Australia to pass on to Albion Sports. "Hopefully they can find out why, when I was hit flush on the head, it split the skin through the helmet and I needed stitches," Langer, 35, told The Australian. "I was so severely concussed that I think it is important they have a look at it. I missed basically three Tests as a result. I'm not sure if they can add any further protection."

Despite regular examinations, Langer is still waiting for a full health clearance, which should take another two weeks. He suffered headaches for two days after the incident and considered retiring, but decided he wanted to try to reclaim the Ashes before walking away from the game.

Langer has received many blows in the head while batting and fielding, and he said the Ntini bouncer was the worst of his career. "Obviously it hit me absolutely in the wrong spot," he told the paper. "I think the protection is excellent. It's very unusual these days to be hit in the helmet and to end up with concussion. It was a freakish incident. [The helmet] might have saved my life and saved my career. It could have been a lot worse."

Ross Barrat, the Albion sales and marketing manager, has spoken to Langer about the impact and said the helmets went through rigorous testing. "We did discuss a few things, a few options, he was very good," Barrat said. "The development of helmets can be a timely process simply because of the testing they have to go through. At the end of the day we are making a safety device."