The IPL lost one of its side attractions on Thursday. Dean Jones’ untimely demise has robbed the tournament of one of its most perceptive and entertaining commentators.
It may be no exaggeration to say that Jones the commentator had more followers in India than back home in Australia. Remember how he used to dress up as an academician during his stint as Professor Deano for NDTV?
He extended Australia’s long tradition of excellent cricketers-turned-commentators. The likes of Ian Chappell, Richie Benaud and Bill Lawry elevated Channel 9 and now Brett Lee, Jones’ colleague on Star Sports Dugout, is a delight too.
Jones, however, had to live through one terrible phase when he was sacked by Ten Sports after he made an insensitive description of Hashim Amla during the second Test between Sri Lanka and Australia at Colombo in 2006. He regretted his mistake and was able to win back the…