Miracle As Australian Test Legend Damien Martyn Wakes Up From Induced Coma

Former Australian cricketer and Test legend Damien Martyn has woken from an induced coma after being hospitalised for over a week due to meningitis, according to the Sydney Morning Herald on Sunday. Martyn, 54, was admitted to Gold Coast University Hospital on December 27 after falling seriously ill and was placed in an induced coma. The development was confirmed by former Australian cricketer Adam Gilchrist, who stated that the 54-year-old is now "able to talk and respond to the treatment".

Martyn represented Australia in 67 Tests, 208 One Day Internationals (ODIs), and four Twenty20 Internationals between 1992 and 2006. He remains widely regarded as one of the greatest ODI finishers in cricket history.

Australia cricket great Adam Gilchrist revealed to Code Sports that Martyn "is now able to talk and respond to treatment."

"He has responded extraordinarily well since coming out (of the coma) to the point where his family feels it's like some sort of miracle,'' Gilchrist said.

"It has been so positive that they're hopeful he will be able to move out of the ICU into another part of the hospital which is representative of what a great recovery it's been and how quickly it has flipped around.''

Gilchrist managed to speak to Martyn's partner Amanda throughout the process.

"Amanda just really wants to say to everyone she is convinced that the love, goodwill and sense of care that they felt from everybody, via messages and via the coverage in the press really helped him," he said.

"They just feel blessed so many people have wanted to support him in his time in need. He will remain in hospital and continue to receive treatment but the turnaround has been miraculous.''

Renowned for his elegant stroke play, Martyn finished his Test career with 4,406 runs in 67 matches at an average of 46.37, including 13 centuries. In ODIs, he scored 5,346 runs in 208 games at an average of 40.80, registering five centuries and 37 half-centuries.

One of Martyn's most memorable achievements came during the 2004 Border-Gavaskar Trophy in India, where he was named Player of the Series. He finished as the top scorer in four of Australia's eight innings, helping Australia secure its first away series win in India in several years.

With ANI Inputs