Geoffrey Boycott

Geoffrey Boycott, born on 21 October 1940, in a small village Fitzwilliam in the West Riding of Yorkshire, England, is a former cricketer of England. He is a right-handed batsman and right-arm medium bowler. Boycott’s mother’s name was Jane and father’s name was Thomas Wilfred Boycott, who was a coal mine worker. He has two brothers. He did his primary schooling from Fitzwilliam Primary School. It was here that his interest in cricket developed. He was awarded the Len Hutton batting Award. Boycott met with a major accident when he was 8-years old. He fell off an iron railing, and the handle of the wringer pierced through his chest. He was nearly dead. His spleen had to be removed to save his life. Later in 1950, his father was critically injured in a coal mine accident and eventually passed away in 1967.

When he turned 10, he became a member of the Ackworth Cricket Club. He performed exceptionally well at the club. He then studied at Kinsley Secondary Modern School and Hemsworth Grammar School. He became the school cricket captain in Hemsworth. Along with pursuing cricket, he also played football. He played for the under-18 team of the Leeds United Club. Boycott left school at the age of 17 to pursue his cricketing career and also because of financial problems. To fund his cricket career, he started working with the Ministry of Pensions and National Insurance in Barnsley. In 1962, he started playing for the Yorkshire cricket team. He had the highest average of 57.85 and made 103 centuries as a county cricketer. He went on to captain his Yorkshire team in 1971.

He was removed from his post as he failed to win a trophy as the captain in 1971 but was reinstated as the captain because his team members revolted. He made his international team debut on 4th June 1964 against Australia. Geoffrey was the first cricketer from England to cross 8,000 runs. He debuted in the One Day International for the England team on 5th January 1971 again against Australia. Boycott took a break from cricket in the years 1974 to 1977 as he lost interest in the game. He returned to the game in 1977 and clinched a century in his comeback match. He was involved in many controversies during his active years, both in professional and personal life. In 1996, he was charged for assaulting his former lover, Margaret Moore.

On 26 February 2003, he married Margaret Rachel Swinglehurst. The couple has a daughter. Geoffrey has also worked as a commentator for the likes of BBC, BskyB et al. He was diagnosed with throat cancer in 2002. He successfully survived the disease. He published his autobiography Boycott: The Autobiography in 1987.