England To Wear Black Armband In Tribute To Graham Thorpe During 1st Test vs Sri Lanka
Grahan Thorpe- (X.com)
On Wednesday, August 21, England will host Sri Lanka in the Test first at the Old Trafford, Manchester. Ollie Pope will lead the Three Lions as England are without their regular skipper Ben Stokes, who has been ruled out of the English summer because of injury.
Ahead of the first game, England announced that they would pay tribute to the late Graham Thorpe during the first match by wearing black armbands in his honour.
“We’ll have our black armbands on throughout the game, and there’ll be a tribute to him before,” Ollie Pope said on Tuesday.
Pope also expressed his pain and heaped massive praise on Thorpe. He Said:
“It’s hurt a lot of people in that changing room. He was a great man. I probably had two or three years playing with him as a batting coach. I admired him.
Thorpe was battling anxiety and depression, out of which he took his own life at the age of 55 on August 4. Thorpe had a key role in England cricket as a player and coach.
Thorpe played 100 games for the Three Lions, while he also served as England's assistant and batting coach. He is also known for shaping the careers of Joe Root and Ben Stokes.
Thorpe's Earlier Attempt To Take His Life
Graham tried to take his life in 2022, following which he stayed in ICU for a long time. Even Ben Stokes had worn a shirt bearing Thorpe’s name.
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