Former England fast bowler David Lawrence dead at 61
David 'Syd' Lawrence, the first British-born black cricketer to play for England, has died at the age of 61, it was announced Sunday.
Nearly a year ago it was revealed that Gloucestershire fast bowler Lawrence, who took 18 wickets in five Tests between 1988 and 1992, had been diagnosed with motor neurone disease, an incurable illness, which progressively damages parts of the nervous system.
A statement from Lawrence's family given to Britain's PA news agency said: "It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of Dave Lawrence MBE following his brave battle with motor neurone disease."
Lawrence bagged a five-wicket haul against the West Indies in 1991 to help England seal a series-levelling win at the Oval, with Desmond Haynes and Vivian Richards among the batsmen he dismissed.
But his career all but ended the following year with a sickening injury when he shattered his kneecap running into bowl during a Test against New Zealand in Wellington.
That was the end of his time with England, although he made a brief comeback for Bristol-based Gloucestershire, playing four four-first class games in 1997 before retiring for good after taking 625 wickets for the county.
He later became president of Gloucestershire, with his old county saying in a social media post Sunday that they were "devastated" to learn of Lawrence's death.
Following his MND diagnosis, there were emotional scenes when Gloucestershire won the T20 Blast final at Edgbaston last year, with captain James Bracey presenting the trophy to Lawrence.
His MND diagnosis also hastened Lawrence's autobiography amid fears he would lose the ability to speak.
Titled 'In Syd's Voice', and written with the help of cricket journalist Dean Wilson, the book was published this month.
England and Wales Cricket Board chairman Richard Thompson hailed Lawrence as a "true trailblazer" who became a "powerful voice for inclusion and representation in our sport".
There was a minute's applause in honour of Lawrence before the start of the third day's play in the first Test between England and India at Headingley on Sunday, with players and officials also wearing black armbands as a mark of respect.
MND - MONTAGNE & NEIGE DEVELOPPEMENT
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Time of India
5 hours ago
- Time of India
Crunchy culprit: Study shows how to tackle acrylamide in French fries
Ahmedabad: That satisfying crunch in French fries and toasted sandwiches might be coming at a hidden cost. The crunch is attributed to a substance identified as acrylamide, which gives the distinct brown colour to deep-fried foods. According to several studies, the substance is linked to various gastrointestinal (GI) issues and can even lead to cancer if consumed very frequently. Research carried out at IIT Gandhinagar (IIT-Gn) addressed the issue by using amino acid adducts (AAA). The findings were published in the form of a paper titled 'Sequestration of acrylamide as amino acid-acrylamide adducts mitigates cellular stress in human gastrointestinal cell lines' recently in the journal, Food and Function, of the UK-based Royal Society of Chemistry. The authors were Axita Patel and Prof Bhaskar Datta. "Starchy foods exposed to frying, baking or roasting are vulnerable to forming acrylamide through a chemical reaction between a natural sugar (glucose) and an amino acid (asparagine). This reaction is identified as the Maillard reaction. Acrylamide is commonly found in fried potato products (French fries, chips), biscuits, toast, cookies and coffee, to name a few," said Prof Datta. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Irish homeowners eligible for solar 'bonus' if they live in these eircodes Activ8 Learn More Undo "Before its association with food, it was always associated with the chemical industry as a versatile petrochemical. " The researchers said that the rise in foods prepared at high temperatures has resulted in higher exposure to acrylamide. Acrylamide's toxic effects create oxidative stress, which affects cells in the GI tract, causing inflammation, tissue damage and even cancer. Prof Datta said that to counter acrylamide, they employed AAA. The interaction of AAA as a 'treatment agent' indicated significantly lower production of acrylamide. The team used amino acids lysine, glycine, cysteine and methionine to form stable adducts to capture acrylamide. The team is also working on sprinkle-type formulations that can be applied to raw potatoes before frying. "The study opens a new way to look at 'capturing' acrylamide to reduce its harmful effects through specific amino acids and also underlines the reason for avoiding fried starchy food not only for cholesterol but also for acrylamide. Regular consumption of antioxidants is also important," said Prof Datta. He gave a practical tip to French fries enthusiasts. "As evident in our work, a simple blanching of potatoes (briefly submerged in very hot water and then quickly cooled in ice water) before they are fried can reduce the acrylamide content," he said.
News18
5 hours ago
- News18
Ex-ENG Captain Praises Bumrah, Says 'He Would Get Me Out 10 Times Out Of 10'
Last Updated: Nasser Hussain has reserved big praise for star Indian fast bowler Jasprit Bumrah, who is leading the bowling attack for Shubman Gill & Co. in the Leeds Test against England. Former England men's cricket team captain Nasser Hussain has reserved big praise for Indian fast bowler Jasprit Bumrah. According to Hussain, who has donned the hat of an expert and commentator after retirement from professional cricket, Bumrah is so good that if he had faced him then, he would have lost his wicket 10 times out of 10 against him. 'I would have had an absolute nightmare. Anyone that created that angle like he does would get me out for fun. He would get me out 10 times out of 10 in a five-match series. He is just brilliant, and I wasn't," Nasser said in a video shared by Sky Sports Cricket when asked, 'How would Nasser Hussain play Jasprit Bumrah?" — Sky Sports Cricket (@SkyCricket) June 22, 2025 Nasser was one of the greatest English batters of all time. The Chennai-born cricketer played 96 Tests and 88 ODIs for Three Lions from October 1989 to May 2004 and scored over 8000 runs. He also served as England's captain in both the Test and ODI formats of the game. Bumrah's career in numbers Bumrah made his international debut for India against Australia during an ODI match played in Sydney in January 2016. Since then he has featured in 45 Tests, 89 ODIs, and 70 T20Is and has more than 400 wickets to his name. Bumrah played a big role in India's T20 World Cup title win last year, and for his super show with the ball, he won the Player of the Tournament award as well. He picked up 32 wickets for India in the 2024-25 edition of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy and bagged the ICC Cricketer and ICC Test Cricketer of the Year awards in 2024. Bumrah, who is the world's No. 1 Test bowler, is leading India's bowling attack in the ongoing first Test against England in Leeds, and on Sunday, June 22, he picked up a five-wicket haul. Bumrah finished England's first innings with figures of 4 for 83 in 24.4 overs. The five-wicket haul in the first innings helped him break multiple bowling records. He became the first Asian bowler to take 150 Test wickets in SENA countries and also equalled Kapil Dev's record of 12 five-wicket hauls for India in Tests played away from home. Bumrah now has 11 five-wicket hauls to his name in WTC, which is the joint-most by a bowler, and he also became the first Indian to take three five-wicket hauls in England. Get latest Cricket news, live score and match results on News18. Download the News18 App to stay updated! First Published:
Indian Express
6 hours ago
- Indian Express
Air India crash: 251 DNA samples match, 245 bodies handed over to kin
Almost 10 days after the London-bound Air India flight with 242 persons on board plunged into a medical hostel complex in Meghaninagar moments after taking off from Ahmedabad airport on June 12, the DNA samples of 251 victims have been matched. Further, a total of 245 bodies have been handed over to the families as of Sunday evening while six families will receive the bodies shortly, said Dr Rakesh Joshi, Medical Superintendent of Ahmedabad Civil Hospital. In a video statement on Sunday evening, Dr Joshi said that the 245 victims whose bodies had been handed over included 176 Indian citizens, seven Portuguese, 49 British citizens, one Canadian and 12 on-ground persons. Since the process of matching the DNA samples is very sensitive and legal matters are also involved, this process is being completed very seriously and as fast as possible, said Dr Joshi. National Forensic Sciences University (NFSU) and forensic science laboratory (FSL) among other institutions are associated with the process. Additionally, personnel from the local administration, state Health Department and other agencies are also helping in the process. Of the 245 bodies handed over to families, 195 belong to 22 districts in Gujarat, including 24 from Vadodara, 12 from Kheda, Ahmedabad 70, Mehsana 7, Botad 1, Aravalli 3, Anand 28, Bharuch 7, Surat 12, Banaskantha 3, Gandhinagar 7, Junagadh 1, Amreli 2, Gir Somnath 5, Mahisagar 1, Bhavnagar 1, Rajkot 3, Jamnagar 2, Patan 3, Dwarka 2, and Sabarkantha 1. Further, 40 bodies were transported to other states and UTs, including Rajasthan 10, Maharashtra 13, Diu 14, Nagaland 1, Manipur 1, and Bihar 1. The mortal remains of 10 victims were sent to London by international flights, said officials.
