Former England batsman John Edrich dies at 83

Former England opening batsman John Edrich passed away on Friday at the age of 83, the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) said in a statement.

John Edrich had a prolific career for England and scored more than 5,000 runs during a 77-match Test career, including 12 centuries. The batsman was also the captain of Surrey and hit 103 hundreds and more than 39,000 runs in first-class cricket.

Edrich was part of the very first ODI that was played between England and Australia in January 1971 and has the distinction of being the Man-of-the-Match from that game.

"With John's passing, we've lost a prolific and fearless batsman one of the select few who have scored



more than 5,000 runs for England," ECB chief executive officer Tom Harrison said in a statement.

"His duels with some of the world's best fast bowlers were legendary, and it's a testament to his ability that his 310 not out against New Zealand in 1965 remains the fifth highest Test score by an English batsman.

"He will be sadly missed, and our thoughts are with his family and friends."

Former England all-rounder Ian Botham led the tributes for Edrich.

"Very sad news today to wake up on Christmas Day and to be told that John Edrich has passed away!!," Botham said on Twitter.

"A wonderful man who I was lucky enough to spend some quality time with... RIP."