Wisden overview
Dark, with a smile that would charm a statue, Tony Lewis is a man of many talents. An attacking right-handed batsmen, he drove impeccably, cut well, and could work the ball anywhere on the legside with easy timing. His belated chance to play for England came when he took over as captain from Ray Illingworth, who was not available on the tough tour of India and Pakistan in 1972-73. Lewis made 0 and 70 not out in his maiden Test at Delhi and 125 at Kanpur - and he included two half-centuries during the three drawn Tests with Pakistan. He failed in the first home Test against New Zealand in 1973 but it was because of injury that he did not represent England again. A gifted writer and broadcaster, he also played rugby for Neath and Pontypool and was a violinist with the Welsh National Youth Orchestra. He became chairman of the Welsh Tourist Board and for many years was the frontman of BBC television's Test coverage, before serving as President of MCC in 1998-99. Christopher Martin-Jenkins

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