Published: Oct 20, 2012, 04:30 PM (IST)
Edited: Oct 20, 2012, 04:30 PM (IST)
Sydney: Oct 20, 2012
Former England captain and commentator Tony Greig on Saturday revealed being diagnosed with a form of lung cancer, for which he needs to have a biopsy to determine the extent of cancer and the treatment required.
Greig realised there is something wrong with him during a commentary stint in the UAE during the Australia-Pakistan one-day series, the Sydney Morning Herald reported.
In May 2012, the 66-year-old Greig was diagnosed with bronchitis but the he became concerned when the condition didn’t improve.
Doctors confirmed about the cancer when test revealed he had lung cancer, which followed removal of fluid from his right lung a fortnight ago.
Also, the doctors had earlier discovered a small lesion on the base of his right lung.
The 66-year-old former all-rounder, who played for England between 1972 and 1977 before becoming a commentator, will undergo a biopsy to know at what stage the disease is and what needs to be done for its cure.
“I have had a few scrapes in my life and this is another one. Vivian (Tony’s wife) and I are going to put the boxing gloves on and fight this like we’ve never fought anything before,” Greig is quoted as saying by Sunday Telegraph.
Greig, who was initially diagnosed with bronchitis in May, has a lesion on his right lung.
After returning to Australia from the ICC World Twenty20 in Sri Lanka, he had “a lot of fluid” drained from the lung, and further testing revealed he had cancer.
Greig said he is yet to ascertain if will be working over with Channel Nine as commentator during the Australian summer.
“At this stage, the summer is totally up in the air. My priority, 100%, is my family. They will come first,” he said.
Greig played 58 Tests for England and scored 3599 runs for an average of 40.43 apart from taking 141 wickets.
Of the 22 One-day internationals that he played, he could score 269 runs for an average 16.81 and claimed 19 wickets.
Meanwhile, a Channel Nine spokesperson expressed it is too early to say about Greig’s role as a commentator for the upcoming Test series between Australia and his native place South Africa.
Former Australian keeper Ian Healy said his commentary colleague will fight back against the disease.
“We are still at the fingers crossed stage. I knew he was crook. I knew he came home from Sri Lanka early (from commentating) and went and had some tests,” Healy said.
“Everyone just thought that it was probably a flu or pneumonia type of thing but that’s not good at all. It’s terrible but one thing he is though is tough so Greigy is a better chances than anyone to get through it,” he added.
Healy concluded, “On the field, off the field he has got so much to fight for too. He has got a lovely family so he will have great support and certainly no shortage of it from us.”
A few days ago, Former New Zealand skipper Martin Crowe was diagnosed with lymphoma, an invasive cancer of the immune system.
Crowe’s manager Louise Henderson said the 50-year-old New Zealand great has requested for privacy after recently discovering about the disease, as he and his family deal with the news, the Associated Press reported.
Indian cricketer Yuvraj Singh had emerged victorious from his battle with a rare germ cell cancer, which kept him off the field for more than 10 months. Yuvraj has made a successful comeback to the Indian side.
(With inputs from PTI)
