Australian cricket legend and ace commentator Dean Jones has passed away reportedly due to a heart attack here in Mumbai. He was currently in the city to do commentary on the ongoing IPL 2020 from studios located in suburbs.
Jones was part of the Star Sports commentary team and was in a bio-secure bubble in a seven-star hotel in Mumbai. He was 59 years old, being born March 24, 1961, in Coburg, Melbourne, Victoria.
"It is with great sadness that we share the news of the passing away of Mr. Dean Mervyn Jones AM. He died of a sudden cardiac arrest. We express our deep condolences to his family and stand ready to support them in this difficult time. We are in touch with the Australian High Commission to make the necessary arrangements," Star India said in a statement.
"Dean Jones was one of the great ambassadors of the game associating himself with Cricket development across South Asia. He was passionate about discovering new talent and nurturing young Cricketers. He was a champion commentator whose presence and presentation of the game always brought joy to millions of fans. He will be sorely missed by everyone at Star and his millions of fans across the globe. Our thoughts and prayers are with his family and friends," the statement read.
One of the early pioneers of ODI cricket, Jones made quick running between the wickets and attacking spinners the norm in the infancy of the limited-overs game. He was also an adept Test cricketer and his 210 in sweltering heat in the famous tied-Test against India in Madras, 1986 is still remembered as one of the greatest knocks by an Australia against India in India.
He played 52 Tests and 164 ODIs for Australia from 1984-1994, making 3631 and 6068 runs respectively. He made a total of 18 centuries and averaged above 40 in both formats. His highest ODI score was 145 runs. He was part of Australia’s 1987 World Cup-winning team.
He retired abruptly from international cricket after a spat with Australia selectors and team management at the age of 30.
After retirement from the game, Jones became a cricket pundit and did commentary in various countries. He also turned a coach, helping Islamabad United to Pakistan Super League (PSL) title in 2016 and 2018. He coached the Afghanistan cricket team and in 2019 helmed the Karachi Kings team in PSL.
