| Biography | Frederick Sewards "Fred" Trueman, OBE (6 February 1931 1 July 2006) was an English cricketer with professional status who later became an author and broadcaster. He is generally acknowledged to have been one of the greatest bowlers in cricket's history. Bowling at a genuinely fast pace and widely known as "Fiery Fred", Trueman played first-class cricket for Yorkshire from 1949 until he retired in 1968.
He represented England in 67 Test matches and was the first bowler to take 300 wickets in a Test career. He and Brian Statham opened the England bowling together for many years and formed one of the most famous bowling partnerships in Test cricket history. Trueman was an outstanding fielder, especially at leg slip, and a useful late order batsman who made three first-class centuries. Trueman's talent, skill and popularity were such that British Prime Minister Harold Wilson jokingly described him as the "greatest living Yorkshireman". However, Trueman was omitted from numerous England teams because he was frequently in conflict with the cricket establishment which he often criticised for its perceived "snobbishness" and hypocrisy.
After he retired from playing, Trueman became a media personality through his work in television and as an outspoken radio commentator and summariser for the BBC, mainly working on Test Match Special. |