Former England spinner Derek Underwood dies aged 78

In a piece of distressing news for the cricketing fraternity, former England spinner Derek Underwood has died at the age of 78. England Cricket's official social media handle revealed the sad news with a heartwarming caption on Monday.

Underwood remains England's most prolific wicket-taker among spinners in Tests, claiming 297 wickets in 86 Tests from 1966 to 1982 at an average of 25.83. The left-arm spinner is the sixth-highest wicket-taker for England in red-ball cricket, just above Graeme Swann, who finished his career with 255 victims.

Underwood only had a brief ODI career, albeit a promising one, claiming 32 scalps in 26 matches at 22.93 and was part of England's 1975 World Cup squad.

Nicknamed 'Deadly' by his teammates due to his flexible action and the ability to produce unrelenting accuracy, Derek Underwood's best performance for England came during the 1968 Ashes Test at the Oval. With only six minutes left in the match, he picked up four wickets in 27 balls to level the series against Australia.

The Englishman made his first-class debut at the tender age of 17 and represented Kent throughout his career. He registered a staggering 900 appearances for Kent and picked up 2523 wickets at 19.04 apiece.

Underwood also held the No.1 Test ranking for nearly four years - from September 1969 to August 1973.

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"He will be sorely missed" - Kent Cricket mourns the death of Derek Underwood

Derek Underwood. (Image Credits: Twitter)

Kent Cricket's Chair Simon Philip issued a statement, claiming that it was a privilege to watch Derek Underwood weave his magic on wet wickets and acknowledged his lofty contributions.

"The Kent Cricket family is in mourning following the passing of one of its greatest-ever players. Watching Derek weave his unique magic on a wet wicket was a privilege for all who were able to witness it. His induction into the ICC Hall of Fame shows the esteem in which he was held in world cricket. An advocate for growing our game worldwide whilst protecting our sport's rich heritage, Derek also made substantial contributions off the field as well as on it, and he will be sorely missed by everyone at Kent Cricket," Philip said in a statement.

Underwood retired from cricket in 1987 but continued to be associated with the sport. He served as Kent Cricket Club president in 2006, followed by becoming the president of The Marylebone Cricket Club in 2008. The Kent cricketer made his way to ICC's Cricket Hall of Fame in 2009.