Robin Smith, the former England cricketer who played 62 Tests and scored nine centuries, has died at the age of 62. His family announced that he died unexpectedly at his home in Perth, Australia, on Monday. No cause of death was given.
Smith, known as 'The Judge', was born in Durban, South Africa, to British parents. He made his Test debut in 1988 against the West Indies and went on to score 4,236 runs at an average of 43.67. His signature shot was the square cut.
He also played 71 one-day internationals and was part of England's 1992 World Cup final squad. His unbeaten 167 against Australia at Edgbaston in 1993 remained England's ODI record until 2016.
Former teammates and officials paid tribute to Smith's fearless batting and shy personality. ECB chair Richard Thompson described him as a player who 'stood toe to toe with some of the quickest bowlers in the world'. Nasser Hussain said Smith 'had no fear in him at all when facing the quicks'.
Smith spent most of his county career with Hampshire, playing over 300 first-class matches. Hampshire chairman Rod Bransgrove called him 'one of the greatest, if not the greatest, of all time Hampshire cricket heroes'.
Smith's family requested that his past struggles with alcohol and mental health not be used to speculate about his death.
