British-born Roebuck, 55, studied law at Cambridge and played 335 first-class matches before making a career writing about the sport, quickly establishing an avid following with his forthright, intelligent prose.

He regularly commentated for the Australian Broadcasting Corporation and wrote for the nation's Fairfax newspapers. Roebuck was covering the South Africa-Australia series when he was found dead in a Newlands hotel, according to the media firms.