Former Australia captain Barry Jarman passes away

Adelaide, July 18 (IANS) Former Australia captain Barry Jarman has passed away aged 84 after illness.

Having made his debut against India at Kanpur in 1959 at the age of 23, the wicketkeeper played 19 Tests from 1959 to 1969 and led Australia for one Test on the 1968 Ashes tour when regular skipper Bill Lawry was injured, leading them to a draw that meant Australia retained the Ashes.

Australia's 33rd Test skipper, Jarman is one of just five Australian male wicketkeepers to captain his country in Test cricket, reports cricket.com.au.

Cricket Australia offered condolences to his family and said in a statement: "We are deeply saddened to learn of the passing of Barry Jarman, the 33rd captain of the Australian men's Test team, aged 84. We pass our deepest symptathies to his wife Gaynor and children Kristen, Gavin, Jason and Erin."

According to ESPNcricinfo, following his retirement, Jarman once again rose to prominence when in the early 1990s, the ICC's commissioning of neutral match referees to oversee player behaviour for international matches came into place.

He presided over 25 Tests and 28 ODIs between 1995 and 2001, the most notable of these was the abandoned Test match between West Indies and England in Jamaica in 1998 which was called off within an hour due to the dangerous nature of the pitch.