Thorpe, batter with a claim to greatness, dies aged 55

‘Hero, mentor and so much more’ played in 100 Tests for England before later becoming part of the coaching team

- RICHARD JOLLY

A dark day for English cricket brought visions of a different type of darkness, of pictures taken in the Karachi gloom, of Graham Thorpe’s trademark white headband providing a contrast to the background of the evening dusk. Thorpe’s unbeaten 64 amid the deteriorating light in 2000 – perfectly paced, eminently calm – brought a victory in both the third Test and the series against Pakistan. It was a seminal innings, perhaps the most celebrated of a man who played 100 Tests and ended with the highest average (44.66) of any England batter between Geoffrey Boycott and Kevin Pietersen.

And yet it was not even his finest performance that winter. Three months later, in Colombo, England made 249 and 74-6 to beat Sri Lanka. Across two innings, his 10 teammates between them made 151 runs off the bat, losing 16 wickets. Thorpe made 113 and 32, both not out, playing a lone hand in alien conditions. It remains one of the greatest displays by any English batter in Asia. It probably always will.

Thorpe’s death at just 55 brought tributes that reflected an enduring influence as well as a sense of nostalgia. “Hero, mentor and so much more,” said Joe Root, offering an indication that Thorpe’s second career as a batting coach may be almost as meaningful as his first as the rock of England’s middle order.

“The best left-handed batter I bowled to,” said the best left-arm fast bowler ever, Wasim Akram, and if the Pakistan legend may have forgotten Brian Lara when delivering that appraisal, it was nonetheless an indication of a virtuosity that could be camouflaged: by England’s losses in the first part of Thorpe’s time in the team – in his first seven years of Test cricket, he only made two centuries in winning causes – and by his unflashy style.