'Devastated' Mark Butcher hails his 'hero' Graham Thorpe as he and Dominic Cork hold back tears with powerful tribute to their late former England team-mate
- Pair played together at international level as well as for Surrey in 1990s-200s
- Thorpe's family have chosen to not yet revealed the player's cause of death
- Legendary batsman was 55 and had been battling a mystery illness for two years
Mark Butcher paid tribute to his former England and Surrey team-mate Graham Thorpe days after the batsman's tragic death at the age of 55 on Monday.
Thorpe is believed to have passed away two years after being diagnosed with an as-year-unrevealed illness, with his family opting not to share the cricketer's cause of death on Monday evening.
During his heavily decorated playing career, Thorpe played 100 Tests in England colours after making his internatiaonl debut in 1993, scoring 16 centuries, and notching another 82 appearances for the ODI side.
Thorpe also spent 17 years at Surrey plying his trade alongside Butcher, where the pair helped the side win three County Championships in four seasons between 1999 and 2002.
The duo also helped secure five one-day titles for the side, but Butcher was equally keen to discuss the human side of his friend and former colleague.
Mark Butcher was visibly emotional discussing his friend and ex-team-mate Graham Thorpe
During their playing heyday the pair were talents in both the England and Surrey sides (Thorpe pictured in 2004)
'He was a hero to me, a lefthanded youngster at Surrey, he's already been on the England A tours and was the up-and-coming thing,' Butcher explained on Sky Sports. 'We shared a dressing room at the Oval for many many years.'
'I learnt an incredible amount from him as a player but also as a friend, and I'm devastated. Just horrendous news and I just hope that he's in a better place now, that's all.
'But as far as being a cricketer, the numbers speak for themselves,' Butcher continued.
'He was a fabulous player in all conditions, played spin brilliantly, took on the quicks, and was an absolute rock for england in that middle order for many, many years.
'I just miss him as a mate.'
Butcher cut a visibly emotional figure discussing Thorpe, at times finding it difficult to keep the tears out of his voice.
Thorpe netted 100 Test appearances during his international career (pictured above in 2002)
Thorpe's former England team-mate Dominic Cork found the occasions similarly difficult as he discussed the 'understated' star.
'It's a tough one,' Cork said. 'We shared a changing room with him for a long time.
'He was the sort of guy, when I first came into the side, he really befriended me, and that's what I like about Graham Thorpe, very understated in the way he was as an individual.
'I remember turning up at the old Lilleshall (Hall) where we used to do training, going on the England A tour to the West Indies, and we ended up playing one of those video arcade games for hours and hours.
'The one thing I'd say about Graham Thorpe is, whatever situation you found yourself in the game, you'd tell him to get out there.
Dominic Cork fought to keep his tribute under control as he discussed his late friend on Sky
Cork discussed the support his England team-mate (pictured right) gave him upon joining
Southern Brave players taking part in The Hundred versus Welsh Fire held a minute's silence in his honour on Monday
Current England Test captain Ben Stokes shared a picture of himself wearing Thorpe's cap number on his jersey
'Because he would fight, he was a little fighter, a really good man, and somebody who I'll miss a lot.'
As well as Cork and Butcher, a number of England cricketing greats have paid tribute to the former coach since news broke of his passing.
Michael Vaughan stressed that Thorpe was 'gone far too young' in his poignant message, while current England Test captain Ben Stokes shared a picture of himself wearing a shirt with Thorpe's cap number on the back, with five heart emojis on social media.
