Tributes have been paid to legendary England and Kent cricketer Derek Underwood who has died at the age of 78. Kent Cricket Club remembered the star as an "icon" whose name would be etched in the history books forevermore.
The cricketer, who held the title of world number one for four years, took 297 wickets in 86 Test matches for England. He made more than 900 appearances for Kent over three decades, from 1963 to 1987, taking 2,523 wickets.
Kent Cricket’s Chair, Simon Philip, said: “The Kent Cricket family is in mourning following the passing of one of its greatest-ever players. Derek was an outstanding contributor to both Kent and England, winning trophies for Club and country and etching his name in the history books forevermore.
“Watching Derek weave his unique magic on a wet wicket was a privilege for all who were able to witness it. His induction into the ICC Hall of Fame shows the esteem in which he was held in world cricket.
“An advocate for growing our game worldwide whilst protecting our sport’s rich heritage, Derek also made substantial contributions off the field as well as on it, and he will be sorely missed by everyone at Kent Cricket.”
The star was just 17 when he made his debut against Yorkshire and finished his first innings as a first-class cricketer with figures of 4 for 40. he went on to become the youngest bowler to take 100 wickets in his initial season.
He captured his 1,000th first-class wicket aged just 25, and took 100 wickets in a season 10 times, notably 157 in 1966. He was the leading bowler in England on four occasions: 1966, 1967, 1978 and 1979.
In a post announcing his death the club said: "According to Wisden, no nickname was better earned than the “Deadly” which Derek’s Kent teammates conferred on him for the havoc he caused on rain-affected pitches. Such was his accuracy and, for a left-arm spinner, pace – either side of medium when the ball was really biting – that when conditions favoured him, an avalanche of wickets was almost guaranteed for Kent."
Derek made 86 Test appearances for his country after making his debut against the West Indies at Trent Bridge in July 1966. He is England’s sixth-highest wicket-taker in Test cricket and remains the leading spinner in the list.
In One-Day International cricket, the left-armer made 26 appearances during the emergence of shorter formats of the game, taking 32 wickets at 22.93. The Club tribute said: "His wizardry brought England one of the most dramatic wins in the history of Tests when, with six minutes left against Australia in The Oval Ashes Test of 1968, he took his fourth wicket in 27 balls.
"It clinched a 226-run win which squared the series, even though a lunchtime cloudburst which flooded the ground had swallowed all but 75 minutes of the last four hours. Following on from his stellar appearances in the Test arena that year, he was named a Wisden Cricketer of the Year for 1969."
According to the retrospective ICC Men’s Test Bowler rankings, he was ranked Number One in the world from September 1969 to August 1973. He was awarded an MBE for services to cricket in the New Year’s Honours list of 1981.
He finally retired from the game in 1987, having won three County Championships, two One-Day Cups, three National Leagues and three Benson & Hedges Cups as a Kent cricketer.
He was named President of Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) in 2008, after serving as Kent Cricket’s Club President in 2006, and was inducted into the ICC’s Cricket Hall of Fame in 2009.
The club added: "The thoughts of everyone at Kent Cricket are with Derek’s friends and family at this sad time."
