Martin Crowe, the New Zealand batting
legend, passed away on Thursday
(March 3) at the age of 53 after a long
battle with cancer, his family said.
"It is with heavy hearts that the family
of Martin Crowe, MBE, advise his
death," they said in a statement.
"Diagnosed in September 2014 with
terminal double-hit lymphoma, he
passed away peacefully today,
Thursday, March 3, in Auckland
surrounded by family."
Crowe enjoyed a 13-year international
career from 1982-95, including four
years as captain. He had a Test
average of 45.36 in 77 matches and
held a slew of New Zealand batting
records when he retired, including
most Test runs (5,444), highest Test
score (299), most 50s (35) and most
hundreds (17) - the last of which still
stands.
In his retirement, Crowe devised a new
ultra-short form of the game called
Cricket Max for his new employer Sky
Television, which was pitched to
British officials and helped lay the
foundation for the modern Twenty20 revolution.