Editorial: Transtasman respect for the voice of cricket

In both his captaincy and, later, his commentary, Benaud was virtually without peer. Photo / AP

Opinion

Richie Benaud set new standards as a player and as a television commentator.

It is not uncommon for men and women who have excelled at a game to continue to be influential as administrators in the sport of their choice.

But it is difficult to think of one who had a greater impact in so many ways as Richie Benaud, who has died, aged 84.

Cricket would be much different today were it not for his influence as a captain of Australia, his central role in the World Series Cricket revolution, and his authoritative television commentary.

In each sphere, Benaud was virtually without peer. As a player, he was the first to score 2000 test runs, and to take 200 test wickets through his mastery of the difficult art of leg spin.

As a captain who never lost a test series, his forceful approach breathed new life into an ailing game. As a commentator and writer, he used this experience to deliver unrivalled insights.

All this meant his backing gave World Series Cricket the credibility and authority it needed to succeed.

He will be remembered most for a half-century of commentating that set standards few have matched.

He understood, for example, the importance of silence when words would only clutter what was on the screen. And he knew the importance of putting the game and its values first and foremost.

Benaud was immediately unequivocal about Trevor Chappell's underam delivery in 1981, branding it "one of the worst things I have ever seen done on a cricket field".

For that, and much else, he earned an equal degree of admiration and respect on both sides of the Tasman.