Former South Africa player and coach Mike Procter dies aged 77
Cricket
"He suffered a complication during surgery and while in ICU went into cardiac arrest," his wife said
(Reuters) – Former South Africa all-rounder Mike Procter, the country’s first coach of the post-isolation era and a stalwart with English county Gloucestershire, died aged 77 on Saturday, his family announced.
"He suffered a complication during surgery and while in ICU went into cardiac arrest. He became unconscious and unfortunately never woke up," his wife Maryna told South African website News24.
Procter was a fierce fast bowler and hard-hitting batter who played seven Test matches, his international career stunted by South Africa’s isolation due to apartheid.
However, he refused to feel bitter over being deprived of a lengthy Test career.
"Yes, I lost a Test career. But what is a Test career compared to the suffering of 40 million people?" he famously said.
"Lots of people lost a great deal more in those years, and if by missing out on a Test career we played a part in changing an unjust system, then that is fine by me."
But upon their return in 1991, he led the side as coach, taking them to the semi-finals of the World Cup in Australia the following year.
He was later also appointed to the International Cricket Council’s panel of match referees and also served as South Africa’s convener of selectors.
Before the ban, South Africa won six of the seven Tests in which he played, all against Australia.
Procter was renowned primarily as a fearsome fast bowler, taking 41 wickets at an average of 15.02 runs in his seven Tests.
But he was also a flamboyant batsman, and equalled a world batting record when he hit six first-class centuries in successive innings.
Procter played 401 first class games, scoring 21,936 runs at an average of 36.01 with 48 hundreds and 109 fifties. He also took 1,417 wickets at an average of 19.53.
