Tony Greig was one of the finest all-rounders of his day, a powerful hitter who bowled medium pacers and, later, off-spin.
Born and brought-up in South Africa, Greig qualified to play for England through his father. He moved there to play for Sussex when it became clear that his chances of playing international cricket would be denied because of the sporting ban imposed on apartheid South Africa.
Greig made his England debut in 1972 against Australia. Within three years had ascended to the captaincy, after the selectors turned to him after the sacking of Mike Denness.
His appointment was not without controversy. Playing against the West Indies at the Port of Spain in in 1974, he had infamously run out Alvin Kallicharran off the final ball of the day, throwing down the stumps as Kallicharran made his way back to the pavilion, mistakenly believing that the ball was dead.
The local crowd went mad and there was a riot.
Kallicharran was later reinstated, but bad blood between the two sides remained, with Greig at the heart of it. Both the English and West Indies press were critical of the act, although his South African origins also had something to do with the resentment he aroused.
Nevertheless, after the mild-mannered nature of his predecessor, Denness, Greig was seen as the right man to lead England against the Australians because of his enthusiasm, competitive nature, and determination to win at all costs.
But in 1977, just before the latest Ashes series with Australia began, Greig was sacked, despite having led England to their first Test series win on Indian soil since 1933/35 the winter before.
Greig had helped Kerry Packer sign up players to his new venture, World Series Cricket, the commercial venture the latter had set up to rival traditional international cricket, when the Australian Cricket Board turned down the bid by his Channel Nine network to gain exclusive TV rights to Australian Test matches.
World Series Cricket ran for three years, but had a profound effect on the game of cricket – coloured clothing, games under lights, substantially better pay for the players.
By May 1977, Packer had signed 35 of the world’s top players – including 13 of the 17 Australians who eventually toured England that summer. He also hired Greig to sign on more players and lead the team.
The establishment reacted with fury and Greig was stripped of the England captaincy.
He remained in the side under his successor Mike Brearley while working for Packer. He was persuaded to function as a plaintiff in a test case against the TCCB (Test and County Cricket Board) who were attempting to ban Packer players from international and domestic cricket.
Greig won his case arguing restraint of trade. He retired from the game soon afterwards, and went on to enjoy a highly successful later career in Australia as a commentator.