53 Facts About Jonathan Agnew

Jonathan Agnew was born in Macclesfield, Cheshire, and educated at Uppingham School.

Jonathan Agnew won three Test caps for England, as well as playing three One Day Internationals in the mid-1980s, although his entire international career lasted just under a year.

Jonathan Agnew was second- and third-leading wicket-taker in 1987 and 1988 respectively, including the achievement of 100 wickets in a season in 1987.

Jonathan Agnew was named as one of the five Cricketers of the Year by Wisden Cricketers' Almanack in 1988.

Jonathan Agnew has contributed as a member of Australian broadcaster Australian Broadcasting Corporation's Grandstand team.

Jonathan Agnew was born on 4 April 1960 at West Park Hospital in Macclesfield, Cheshire, to Philip and Margaret Jonathan Agnew.

Jonathan Agnew recalls growing up on the family farm and first becoming aware of cricket aged "eight or nine"; his father would carry a radio around and listen to Test Match Special:.

Jonathan Agnew attended Uppingham School for his secondary education, and left in 1978 with nine O-levels and two A-levels in German and English.

On his first-class debut against Lancashire in August 1978, the 18-year-old Jonathan Agnew bowled to England international David Lloyd, an opening batsman with nine Test caps.

Jonathan Agnew won a Whitbread Brewery award at the end of his debut season, an achievement he ascribes to the influence of his county captain, Ray Illingworth: he had taken only six first-class wickets at an average of 35.

Illingworth was quoted in The Times as saying that Jonathan Agnew was "the second fastest bowler" in England in 1978, behind only Bob Willis.

On that Australia tour, Jonathan Agnew played his only youth Test, but made headlines when invited to bowl at the touring England team in the nets:.

The Editor's Notes of the 1980 Wisden Cricketers' Almanack reported, under the heading "England's Promising Youngsters", that Jonathan Agnew had strengthened himself over the winter by felling trees.

Jonathan Agnew's career did not initially live up to his early promise.

England's next match was a one-off home Test against Sri Lanka and Jonathan Agnew retained his place in the England team.

Jonathan Agnew replaced the injured Paul Allott after the second Test.

Jonathan Agnew played just one first-class match on the tour, versus South Zone in Secunderabad, achieving match figures of seven wickets at an average of 29, but he did play in three One Day Internationals, two in India and one in Australia.

Jonathan Agnew began the 1985 season vying with the established England fast bowlers to get back into the Test side.

Jonathan Agnew's timing was perfect and he was called up for the Fourth Test at Old Trafford to partner Ian Botham and Paul Allott in an all-Cheshire born seam attack.

The match finished as a draw, and Jonathan Agnew failed to take a wicket.

Jonathan Agnew was relegated from an opening bowler in the first innings, to fifth bowler in the second, in which he only bowled nine overs.

Jonathan Agnew was dropped again from the side, only for Richard Ellison to cement his place with match-winning performances that helped claim the Ashes for England.

Jonathan Agnew was the first Leicestershire player to achieve this milestone since Jack Birkenshaw in 1968, which was the season before the county programme was greatly reduced, making the feat much less common.

Jonathan Agnew's form remained good: he followed his 1987 feat of taking the second-most wickets in the County Championship by taking the third-most in 1988.

Jonathan Agnew recalls that county colleague Peter Willey made a suggestion:.

Jonathan Agnew formally retired from playing professional cricket at the end of the following season: Leicestershire's last match of the 1990 Championship season was his last first-class game.

Leicestershire won the match and progressed to the final, but Jonathan Agnew chose not to play.

Wisden commented, "Jonathan Agnew hit a spectacular, career-best 90 from 68 balls, including six sixes and eight fours, and then took the first five Yorkshire wickets to fall".

Jonathan Agnew reflects on his playing career as having had two periods:.

Jonathan Agnew began gaining experience as a journalist in 1987, while still playing cricket, when at the invitation of John Rawling he took off-season employment with BBC Radio Leicester as a sports producer.

Unhappy at certain editorial decisions that had been taken during his time with the newspaper, Jonathan Agnew agreed to attend an interview after the tour.

Jonathan Agnew joined Test Match Special in 1991, in time for the first Test match of the summer.

Jonathan Agnew was initially a junior member of the Test Match Special team, learning at close quarters from figures such as Brian Johnston, Henry Blofeld and Bill Frindall.

When Channel 4 won the broadcasting rights to television coverage of England's home Test matches in 1998, Jonathan Agnew was approached by the broadcaster and offered a job on the commentary team.

Jonathan Agnew declined the opportunity, opting to remain BBC cricket correspondent, in part because he was a "radio man" and in part out of loyalty.

The BBC had the UK television rights, but with so many specialist TV cricket presenters now at Channel 4 and therefore unavailable to the BBC, Jonathan Agnew was asked to present the coverage.

Jonathan Agnew has won many awards for his broadcasting, including two Sony Awards for Best Reporter, and Best Radio Broadcaster of the Year, an award from the Association of Sports Journalists.

Jonathan Agnew was made an Honorary Doctor of Arts by De Montfort University, Leicester in November 2008, and an Honorary Doctor of Letters by Loughborough University in July 2011.

In 2016 Jonathan Agnew was a member of the BBC commentary team at the 2016 Summer Olympics, covering equestrian events.

Jonathan Agnew was appointed as a Deputy Lieutenant of Leicestershire in October 2015, and as a Member of the Order of the British Empire in the 2017 New Year Honours for services to broadcasting.

In 2001, Jonathan Agnew was part of the BBC team that was sent to Sri Lanka to cover England's Test match series.

Jonathan Agnew's reaction was combative, appearing on BBC Breakfast and giving his opinion that the ban presented the ECB with a chance to withdraw from the controversial tour and that they should take the opportunity.

Fellow BBC commentator Jack Bannister felt that Jonathan Agnew's comments were inappropriate, but only to the extent that he had referred to his friendship with Atherton: Bannister advised Jonathan Agnew that he should continue to be honest and forthright as a reporter.

Jonathan Agnew was involved in a minor controversy regarding an appearance by Lily Allen on Test Match Special in 2009.

One example took place in August 1991, when Jonathan Agnew was commentating with Brian Johnston.

Jonathan Agnew initially tried to continue his summary, before becoming unable to speak for laughing, at one point saying "Aggers, for goodness' sake, stop it" as he struggled to regain his composure.

Jonathan Agnew has written about the role that cricket played in the collapse of the relationship, comparing his circumstances with those of then England batsman Graham Thorpe.

Jonathan Agnew found that his job interfered with his relationship with his children:.

Jonathan Agnew has subsequently remarried: he met Emma Jonathan Agnew, current editor of BBC East Midlands Today, when they worked together on BBC Radio Leicestershire.

Jonathan Agnew suffers from Dupuytren's contracture, a medical condition that affects the connective tissue in his hands.

Jonathan Agnew has had numerous operations to address the progressive condition, which causes the hands to contract into a claw-like position.

In 2019, journalist Jonathan Agnew Liew wrote an article in which he expressed concern about some of the language used in the media to describe Jofra Archer's selection for England.

Jonathan Agnew was reprimanded by the BBC; he deleted his Twitter account.