The game of cricket saw a poignant and moving moment of solidarity in these tough times. Cricket fans around the world pulled out their bats from the kits and placed them out as a tribute to the late Test cricketer Phillip Hughes.

On Tuesday, Hughes, 25, was hit on the neck by a short delivery bowled by Sean Abott during a match between South Australia and New South Wales at Sydney Cricket Ground. He was rushed to the hospital but succumbed to the injuries two days later. His death was described as a “freakish accident” by Peter Brukner, doctor of the Australian cricket team, who added that the condition was “incredibly rare”.

In the wake of the tragedy, the cricket community and fans around the world came together to mourn the death. Meanwhile, a man named Paul Taylor from Sydney put his bat out at his front door and sent out a tweet. The tweet was picked up by many social media users, who soon followed suit. In less than a day, #PutOutYourBats hashtag started trending, with people posting pictures of their own bats to remember the young cricketer.

Here are some of the touching tweets, including the one that started it all:

 

 

 

 

 

 

A bat put out with Hughes’ name outside the Sydney Cricket Ground to remember him:

 

Hughes’ team mates Adam Gilchrist and Dean Jones also joined in by putting their own bats out:

 

 

Google Australia also paid tribute by posting a picture of a bat on its home page:

 

Tribute by cricket teams including England and Pakistan: