Former Australian cricketer, commentator and coach, Dean Jones’ sudden death on Thursday, 24 September, sent shockwaves in the entire cricketing fraternity. The host broadcaster for the Indian Premier League, Star Sports, for which he was in India for a commentary stint, paid a heartfelt tribute on Thursday evening, before and during Match 6 of Indian Premier League (IPL).
The 59-year-old passed away in Mumbai on Thursday due to a sudden cardiac arrest. He was doing the match analysis in the broadcaster’s studio till Wednesday evening. Star Sports put out a tribute video paying respects to their panelist.
His co-panelists Brett Lee and Scott Styris at the ‘Select Dugout’ panel couldn’t control their emotions during the pre-match show on Thursday.
Former fast-bowler Lee said, “He would’ve wanted us to be here tonight because it’s pretty much Deano’s dugout tonight, an absolute legend. Obviously, the first thing is we send our condolences to his family, a really tough day for everyone, not only for his friends and family but also for the cricket world. What Deano would’ve wanted is for us to come out here in the dugout, get it done, have some fun for the game we all love.”
Remembering his banter and fun times together, former New Zealand all-rounder Styris said, “He thought this to be the Deano show really. He’s on to me every day with new ideas on how we can make it better. So I think it’s the right thing to do to be here. It’s gonna be hard but we hope to make him feel proud tonight.”
Thought poured in from the cricket fraternity around the world after Jones’ sudden demise.
The fans, journalists and some team members of the Star Sports talked about how they remembered ‘Prof Dean’ on their network. The West Indian legend, Brian Lara also remembered his time with Dean Jones at the panel.
Here are some of the reactions:
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