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LONDON: Former England fast bowler Peter Lever, who helped his country win the 1970-71 Ashes series in Australia, has died aged 84.
Lever took 41 wickets in 17 Tests and also featured in 10 One-day Internationals, including the historic inaugural match in the format against Australia in 1971.
Lever, who also starred for English county Lancashire, made his Test debut for Raymond Illingworth’s England team during the 1970-71 tour to Australia.
He impressed in Australia again in 1975, taking his career-best Test figures of six for 38 in Melbourne.
In the pre-helmet era, Lever infamously struck New Zealand’s Ewen Chatfield on the head with a bouncer during a 1975 Test in Auckland, with emergency medical treatment saving the tail-ender’s life after his heart briefly stopped.
“I honestly thought I had killed him as I saw him lying there in convulsions. I felt sick and ashamed at what I had done and all I could think when I got back to the pavilion was that I wanted to retire,” said Lever, who was eventually convinced by Chatfield that he was not to blame for the accident.
Lancashire posted the news of his death on X, writing: “We are deeply saddened by the news that Peter Lever has passed away, aged 84.
“Peter was inducted into our Hall of Fame last year after playing 301 First-Class matches between 1960 and 1976 — taking 796 wickets. Our thoughts are with his family and friends.”
Published in Dawn, March 28th, 2025
