The beloved voice of Channel Nine’s cricket commentary Richie Benaud has died in a Sydney hospice at the age of 84.
Benaud had been receiving radiation treatment for skin cancer since November.
Born in Penrith, Benaud played his club cricket for Central Cumberland (now Parramatta), where he was first grade captain.
A leg-spinning allrounder, Benaud played 63 Test matches for Australia between 1952 and 1964, taking 248 wickets.
Benaud also captained Australia between 1958 and 61, leading the side in the famous tied Test against the West Indies in 1960/61.
But it was time as a commentator that elevated Benaud to legendary status among the Australian public.
He took up his spot behind the microphone with the BBC while still captaining Australia in 1960, before becoming one of the greatest commentators in world cricket over the next half a century.
In 2013, Benaud was involved in a car crash outside his Coogee home that left him with two fractured vertebrae and ended his time in the commentary box.
As news of Benaud’s death has begun to spread, tributes have been flowing in from all over the world for a man who is regarded as one of the most influential in the game’s history.
Council flags will fly at half mast in Parramatta today in memory of Benaud.