Former Australian captain Tim Paine believes there could be a 'serious conversation' ahead for Will Pucovski after the young star retired hurt against Tasmania.
Pucovski was struck in the helmet by a Riley Meredith bouncer and had to leave the field with Campbell Kellaway replacing him as a concussion substitute.
The incident is believed to be Pucovski's 12th concussion.
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Paine believes the opener's health has to be a major consideration.
"I was watching that live, it wasn't good to watch," he said on SEN.
"Hopefully he's OK, first and foremost. But I think it is concerning it keeps happening and I think now is probably the time him and his people around will have to have a serious conversation on what's next and which way he is going to attack it.
"I think a lot of stuff around social media was: when is enough enough? And when is your health more important than the game you love?
"… I don't love talking about it, I think everyone knows the issue there and unfortunately it keeps happening, he keeps getting hit in the head.
"He's got some concussion issues which we're seeing more and more in all sports, mainly contact sports, but certainly in cricket in the last four or five years it's become much more of an issue."
Asked if he had any advice for Pucovski, Paine added it's tough to give perspective without a full understanding of the situation.
"You can't give someone advice that you don't know the complete story. I don't know how bad his concussions are, I haven't seen his scans, I'm not a doctor or surgeon and certainly not a brain expert. I just hope he's OK and he's happy," he said.
"At the end of the day he's a great young talent, an exceptional talent with the bat in hand but life's got to be more important at some stage I would've thought."
The concussion incident against Tasmania was Pucovski's second concussion of the year after he suffered the first in a Second XI match in January.
Having made his Test debut in 2021, Pucovski has been touted as a long-term opener for Australia, however a number of issues have hampered his progress.
Speaking before the Second XI concussion, Pucovski revealed mental health issues have been the bigger problem.
"The concussions have masked the bigger issues, and that's the mental health stuff," Pucovski explained on the Vic State Cricket Podcast.
"The mental health has been a much bigger issue for me than even the concussions.
"I don't fear for my long-term health, it's more the mental health side that's been the tougher part."
After the January incident, Victoria's head of male cricket Dave Hussey said Pucovski's health is always 'the No.1 priority'.
"We take our medical team's advice to the letter. They're excellent and they've got his best interest at heart," he said on the podcast.
"We'll be very cautious, especially with Will's history but the ultimate goal is for Will to play Shield cricket and hopefully Test cricket for Australia in the longer term."
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