Saturday 29 December 2012 11:43, UK
Nasser Hussain says generations should be thankful to Tony Greig for transforming cricket.
Nasser Hussain says generations of English cricketers should be thankful to Tony Greig for his role in transforming the sport. The Sky Sports pundit was speaking after it was announced that former England captain and TV commentator Greig had died of lung cancer in Sydney at the age of 66. He will be remembered for his flair with bat and ball and for his wit in the commentary box, but Hussain highlighted his bravery in playing a prominent role in Kerry Packer's World Series Cricket concept in the late 1970's. The decision to play in the Australian tournament, which gave rise to the growth of one-day cricket and saw players being properly paid for the first time, would ultimately cost him the England captaincy. But Hussain said that while he was initially dismissed as a rebel, he will be remembered for his bravery as a trailblazer. "It was a huge impact," he told Sky Sports News HD. "It was pretty much an amateur game before him where players played for the love of the game and because of Tony Greig, because of Kerry Packer and because of World Series, suddenly the world realised they had to start paying their cricketers. "One-day cricket became much more dramatic with the coloured clothing and the white balls and another form of cricket was invented. "He was a dramatic sort of guy; the blond locks, the collar up, the way he took on opposition cricketers. I played with Keith Fletcher at Essex, who knew Tony very well and would always say what a fantastic guy and leader he was. He was a great England captain as well. He transformed the game. He was a good guy. "He was very brave and he did take people on. He wasn't someone who just went with the norm and he wasn't establishment. It was in his character. "He could have been completely banned from the game and taken out of the game. He obviously got a lot out of it himself, but so did every generation of cricketer after him because of what he achieved and because he went off to Australia and took on the establishment. "In those 'Packer years' the cricketing world was in absolute turmoil and uproar and nobody really knew where to turn. Luckily, everyone bought in to this new form of the game, bought in to World Series cricket. "That generation of cricketers, you're talking about the great West Indies team and the Australian team and the England team had great cricketers, they suddenly realised that these guys were going to have to be paid properly. "Television became very interested because the product that they saw was much more exciting than some of the cricket that went on before. "When you get that combination, the establishment has to follow and interest in the game grew because of what he achieved."
