Former Australia batter Damien Martyn has woken up from an induced coma and is making a “miraculous” recovery after he was diagnosed with meningitis just over a week ago.
The 54-year-old, who played 67 Test matches between 1992 and 2006, fell ill late last month and was admitted to a Queensland hospital on 27 December.
In a statement on behalf of Martyn’s family, close friend and former Australia teammate Adam Gilchrist said on Sunday: “It’s been an unbelievable turn of events in the last 48 hours.”
“[Martyn] has responded extraordinarily well since coming out of the coma to the point where his family feels it’s like some sort of miracle,” the statement said, adding “he is now able to talk”.
Gilchrist, a former wicketkeeper, said Martyn’s condition was “so positive” that medical staff were hopeful he may move out of the intensive care unit, which showed “what a great recovery it’s been and how quickly it has flipped around”.
Meningitis is an infection of the protective membranes that surround the brain and spinal cord. It can come on suddenly and kill within hours if not treated quickly.
Gilchrist and Martyn’s family also thanked the staff at the Gold Coast University Hospital “who have been nothing short of amazing throughout this challenging time”.
“He will remain in hospital and continue to receive treatment but the turnaround has been miraculous”.
Martyn is in “good spirits and overwhelmed by the support,” the statement continued, with his wife Amanda adding that the “love, goodwill and sense of care” from his supporters has helped in his recovery.
Martyn, who made his Test debut at the age of 21, played in four Ashes series and during his career scored 4,406 Test runs at an average of 46.37.
He won two World Cups with Australia and retired before the Third Test of the 2006-07 series.
During the 2003 World Cup final, Martyn – batting with a broken finger – scored an unbeaten 88 as Australia defeated India.
Martyn was also a prolific one-day international batter, scoring 5,346 runs from 208 matches at an average of 40, with five hundreds and 37 fifties.
He also represented Yorkshire as an overseas player in 2003.
