'A batter ahead of his time': tributes paid to swashbuckling Smith

Tributes have been paid to Robin Smith, whose swashbuckling batting and fearlessness at the crease lit up English cricket in an era when it often languished in the doldrums, following his death at the age of 62.

- Sean Ingle

Smith played 62 Tests for England between 1988 and 1996, averaging 43.67. But it was the sight of him taking the fight to the fastest pace bowlers of his generation that will live longest in the memory.

His highest Test score of 175, against West Indies in Antigua in 1994, came against a bowling attack led by Curtly Ambrose and Courtney Walsh, who took 924 Test wickets between them. Yet, in the same game that Brian Lara hit a Test record score of 375, the majestic Smith smashed 26 fours and three sixes.

His best year came in 1991, when he scored 675 runs at an average of 67.5 and hit a brilliant 148 against West Indies. One of his England teammates, Mark Ramprakash, told the Guardian that while Smith was a phenomenal batter, he was an even better person and teammate.

"There's his cricket, the way he played as a batsman, which was to be hugely admired in an era of great fast bowlers," Ramprakash said. "And then there's the person, who was more admirable still.

"On my England debut in 1991 I was 21, and I'll never forget how kind he was in welcoming me into the dressing room, the warmth of his personality. He was someone who enjoyed life.

"Life was not a rehearsal for him, he went out and lived it. He mixed freely with anybody and was very popular, very well liked.