- Allan Border was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease in 2016
- The cricket icon has avoided public events in recent years
Australian cricket great Allan Border has decided he will do commentary during the first Test against India, revealing his mind is still sharp as he battles bravely with Parkinson’s disease.
‘AB’ revealed in 2023 that he’s done his best to avoid public events since first being diagnosed with the degenerative condition in 2016.
The iconic former Aussie skipper has opted against doing commentary in recent years, but has confirmed that he will be back behind the microphone for the Perth Test.
The news was confirmed by sports journalist Tom Morris on Wednesday morning.
Morris posted to social media: ‘The great Allan Border will commentate on the first Test in Perth for Fox. He’s battling Parkinson’s and concedes he’s not moving as well as he once did, but his mind is sharp & it’s awesome he’s still working. Australian cricket owes plenty to him.’
The former hard-nosed player – who plundered 11,174 runs at Test level is very well respected by cricket fans all around the world – and they were happy to hear he’d be doing commentary.
‘Love AB. A legend!’ posted one fan.
‘So good to see Allan Border on the commentary panel. Keep well, AB.’ replied another.
In April, Border pleaded with Prime Minister Anthony Albanese to ‘do something’ about the neurodegenerative disorder, which more than 150,000 Aussies are living with each day.
Following his diagnosis, Border said the disease took away his confidence to work in TV for Fox Sports covering cricket and it also impacted his relationships with family, friends and teammates.
In a video released ahead of World Parkinson’s Day, Border called on the PM and federal health minister Mark Butler to be pro-active in regards to funding.
‘I remember when I was told, my first image was of [champion boxer] Muhammad Ali lighting the Olympic torch,’ Border said in the clip.
‘I just thought people with it [Parkinson’s] suffered with a tremor. ‘There’s a lot [more] to this disease, we just need a little bit of help.’
Speaking in tandem with Parkinson’s Australia boss Olivia Nassaris, Border pointed out the disease doesn’t discriminate.
‘I was fit and healthy before I was diagnosed,’ he said. ‘It doesn’t just affect me, I have a wife and four kids.
‘I [also] knew very quickly I couldn’t work on TV [at Fox Sports] anymore, people would ask ‘what’s happened to AB’?
‘It can impact on younger people, as it stands close to 13,400 people have Parkinson’s in Australia who are of working age.
‘Things like paying your mortgage can all of a sudden be very difficult…it is also an ‘iceburg’ type disease, it has many different layers.’
They include speech difficulties, dementia, problems with sleeping and depression.
Border is regarded as one of the greatest cricketers in the history of the sport.
He has left a lasting legacy on cricket and the award for Australia’s best male cricketer of the year is named after him – the Allan Border Medal. The India-Australia test series has also been named the Border Gavaskar Trophy.
He led his country to victory in the 1987 Cricket World Cup – the maiden world title for Australia – and played 156 Test matches for Australia, which was a record total before it was passed by fellow countryman Steve Waugh.
A left-handed batter, Border scored 11,174 runs at Test level, with an average of over 50. He scored 27 Test centuries, with a top score of 205 against New Zealand at Adelaide oval in 1987.
Many of Border’s former teammates still refer to him simply as ‘Skipper’ and revere him as one of Australia’s best Test captains..
‘Shane Warne called him Skipper,’ a television commentary colleague told Daily Mail Australia. ‘Everybody from that great Australian team of the 1990s calls him Skipper.
‘That’s his name. That’s the way he was addressed. Everybody who played under him still calls him Skipper.’
