Graham Thorpe: who is ex-England cricketer taken ill, who is his wife, career highs - latest update

The former England batter and former men’s batting coach Graham Thorpe remains “seriously ill” in hospital and the ex-England star Jonathan Trott has taken on his role with the Afghanistan Cricket Team.

Thorpe had also worked as England men’s batting coach but stepped down from his role in February following England’s disastrous 4-0 defeat in the Ashes.

It was then announced that the Ex-England batter had been appointed the head coach of the Afghanistan’s men’s team a month after.

However, a recent from May from the PCA has said: “Graham Thorpe has recently fallen seriously ill and is currently in hospital receiving treatment.

“His prognosis is unclear at this stage and we ask for privacy for him and his family at this time. Our thoughts are with Graham and his family.”

Who is Graham Thorpe?

Thorpe was naturally a right-handed batter but reputedly changed his stance when he was just six-years-old to make it harder for his older brothers to get him out in his garden.

The 52-year-old played over 100 Tests for England  between 1993 and 2005.

He made his First Class debut for Surrey in 1988 and scored over 21,000 runs for his county in over 340 matches.

On his international debut in 1993, he scored a 114 not out against Australia at Trent Bridge. He was named Wisden Cricketers of the Year in 1998 and developed into an extremely highly regarded batter.

In his 100 Tests for his country, Thorpe scored 6,744 runs at an average of 44.66. He made 16 centuries as well as 39 half centuries.

His highest score during a Test match came against New Zealand at Christchurch in 2002. He made 200 not out off 231 balls which included a partnership with Andrew ‘Freddie’ Flintoff of 281 runs in 51 overs.

In his 82 ODI matches, Thorpe made 2,380 runs and was a highly capable stroke-maker.

After suffering from marital difficulties, which were well documented by the papers, Thorpe decided to withdraw from one-day games and eventually pulled out of the Australian Tour in 2002.

When he came back during England’s fifth Test against South Africa in 2003, the left-hander was greeted with a standing ovation and went on to score 124.

Thorpe announced his retirement from Test cricket in 2005 after the England selectors decided to choose Kevin Pietersen instead of him for the first Test match of the Ashes.

The England chairman of selectors David Graveney had described the opting for Pietersen over Thorpe as “the most difficult decision that I have been party to in my time as selector.”

Graham Thorpe: post-England

The left-hander lasted two more months with his County before announcing his retirement from domestic cricket too.

His first stint as coach came later that year for New South Wales as their batting coach. He was then named as the region’s assistant coach when Matthew Mott was promoted to the position of coach.

Thorpe did some work with BBC Radio 5’s Test Match Special programme during England’s tour of India in 2007 and then also appeared on Sky Sports’ highlights coverage.

He wrote a monthly column for the cricket magazine SPIN World Cricket Monthly and was announced as England’s batting coach in 2010.

After 12 years in the role, Thorpe stepped down after the England Test side had a run of one win in 17 Test matches.

Who is Jonathan Trott?

The 41-year-old Jonathan Trott played 52 Test matches for England at an average of 44.08. Born in South-Africa, Trott first played for Warwickshire second-XI in 2002 and hit a record score of 245.

He then went on to score 134 on his County Championship debut for the county.

Since his retirement away from the pitch in 2018, he has worked as a coach with Warwickshire, Kent, Scotland and England.

After the announcement, Trott said: “I’m honoured and excited to have the opportunity to take one of international cricket’s most exciting teams through what is a huge year for their development as a team.

“I also believe that Afghanistan has proved to be a hot-bed of talent, and has produced players capable of playing the game in their own style and with unrivalled passion.

“I can’t wait to get to work with a group of players who are clearly capable of generating results in a style that will make the people of Afghanistand proud.”