Former Australian cricketer Eric Freeman dies aged 76

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Former Australian Test cricketer Eric Freeman has died aged 76. He had suffered a heart attack last weekend and was taken to hospital where he breathed his last on the night of Monday, December 14. He was the awardee of the Medal of the Order of Australia for his service to sport in 2002.

Freeman was a pace bowler and had made his Test debut against India in Brisbane during the 1967-68 tour. He took three wickets in the first innings including the wickets of both Indian openers - Farokh Engineer and Syed Abid Ali. He was also a useful lower-order batsman and was the first batsman to start his Test career with a six as his first scoring shot.

Freeman went on to play 11 Tests in total for Australia and his last appearance for the team in Tests was against South Africa and it turned out to be the last match for the rainbow nation before they were banned from international cricket for apartheid.

In an 11-match-long Test career, Freeman took 13 wickets at an average of 30.07 and also scored two half-centuries with an average of 30.50.

Domestically, he was a legend for South Australia as the pacer led the team to a Sheffield Shield title in the 1970-71 season by blowing away New South Wales with his career-best 8 for 47, in first-class cricket.


He played cricket in summer while in winter he used to switch to football and represented Port Adelaide. He scored as many as 390 goals in 116 games for the club.

Cricket Australia chairman Earl Eddings joined the chorus of former players in paying tribute to Freeman whom he rated ‘one of the greatest athletes South Australia has ever produced.’

“Eric will forever be remembered as one of the greatest athletes South Australia has ever produced. He was an all-rounder in every sense of the word — powerful with both bat and ball in cricket and a prodigious goalkicker with the Magpies in the winter months,” Eddings said.

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