Former England batsman John Edrich passed away at the age of 83, England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) shared on Twitter. Edrich was a left-handed batsman who played for England from 1963-1976 and made 5138 runs in 77 Test matches.

He also scored over 100 FC centuries with 12 of them coming in Tests, which included his highest Test score of 310* against New Zealand at Headingley in 1965. This innings of Edrich holds the world record for most boundaries - 52 fours and five sixes.

His 52 fours remain the most fours in one Test innings, with Virender Sehwag second on the list with 47 fours during his 254 against Pakistan in Lahore, 2006.

Tom Harrison, ECB Chief Executive Officer, said: “With John’s passing, we’ve lost a prolific and fearless batsman – one of the select few who has scored more than 5,000 runs for England. 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.”

Edrich also played for Surrey for 20 years between 1958 and 1978. He would go on to amass almost 40,000 first-class runs at an average of over 45.

Edrich made his England Test debut against the West Indies in June 1963, ending his career at the top level against the same opposition in July 1976. He also played in seven one-day internationals for England, including their first-ever match in the format against Australia in January 1971.

Edrich was appointed England batting coach in 1995 but five years later was struck down with a rare form of leukemia. He was given only seven years to live, but defied expectation and announced in 2012 he had been cured of cancer by a course of injections.

(ECB and Mirror UK inputs)