“I think my odds were 7%" - Campbell details health scare

Campbell was rushed to hospital in the middle of last month while in the UK, and was forced into an induced coma.

After pulling through with no damage to the brain, follow-up tests showed no lasting effects to the heart, and Campbell was eventually discharged with doctors excluding the possibility of a heart attack as cause.

Speaking to Australian radio station Triple M in his native city of Perth, Campbell has little memory of the seven-day stint in hospital, though can recollect the beginning of the scare, and the fortuitous events in the immediate aftermath that almost definitely saved his life.

“I have no recollection (of the induced coma)," Campbell said.

"When I woke up I was a bit confused, I thought I was in Hong Kong (where Campbell played and coached), and I was asking my wife why I was in Hong Kong without my kids. Seven days of my life I will never remember.

"My daughter wanted to go on the slide and I was sort of up there, and then for some reason I was tired and decided to lie down.”

Luckily, Beci Bassett, the woman who saved Campbell, was within metres and had recently completely her CPR training.

“The lucky thing was I actually lied down on the foot of a young girl whose mother (Bassett) was the one that saved my life with CPR," Campbell added.

“She had just literally finished her course. Just a surreal experience.

“I actually had lunch with her yesterday. What do you say to someone who saved your life? It was a pretty cool experience to be honest.”

With no underlying health conditions and other abnormalities ruled out, those who treated Campbell suggest a recent chest infection or a battle with Covid may have played a role in the ordeal.

“I had a chest infection when we went to South Africa (for Cricket World Cup Super League) in November. I was a bit sick but I was fine, and then I had Covid in February, I think like everyone on the planet has had it," Campbell said.

“I think my odds were like 7% or something, which means I get a second crack at it and I’m gonna make sure I live it to the most.

“They’re saying my heart is in perfect condition now, so it’s one of those weird things that no one can put a finger on it.”

Campbell will eventually re-join the Dutch setup for the resumption of their Cricket World Cup Super League campaign, though the 50-year-old will ease into proceedings once reaching home.

“I’m actually not allowed to fly for a couple of months, so we’re actually getting the ferry back (to the Netherlands). I’m going old school, I’m going back to Don Bradman’s time,” Campbell joked.

“I’m looking forward to going home and getting back into a routine and seeing my cricket team again and seeing how they’re going, but we won’t be rushing back into it.”