Vale: Peter Roebuck

ABC cricket commentator Peter Roebuck died on the weekend, in a hotel in Cape Town, South Africa. He was 55.

Roebuck wrote for the Fairfax press and was part of the ABC’s ‘Grandstand’ radio broadcasting team, but his commentary was also heard on ABC TV Sports and FOX Sports.

South African police have confirmed Roebuck took his own life in Cape Town on Saturday night. He was spoken to by police at the Southern Sun Hotel the previous night.

“All at the ABC are greatly saddened at the news of the death of Peter Roebuck in South Africa,” ABC managing director Mark Scott said in a statement.

“Peter was an indispensable part of the ABC’s summer of cricket, providing commentary that was wise and insightful about the game he played and loved.

“He was a scholar of cricket and he would speak and write of it with great knowledge and passion.”

Fairfax Media Chief Executive, Greg Hywood, said today: “It is with great shock that we have learnt today that Peter Roebuck has died in Newlands, South Africa.

“Peter was not only an extremely gifted cricket writer for The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age, he was also one of Australia’s most popular cricket commentators for the ABC.”

An inquest will be conducted into the circumstances surrounding the death.

Lifeline: 131114

Source: ABC, The Age