Cricket stars pay respects to Maynard

Andrew Strauss and Mike Gatting were among those who paid their respects as Tom Maynard was laid to rest in his home city of Cardiff.

The 23-year-old Surrey batsman died on June 18 after being hit by a London Underground train, and a congregation of around 900 attended his funeral at Llandaff Cathedral.

Alongside Maynard’s father Matthew, mother Sue and sister Ceri were figures from the sporting world including England captain Strauss and former internationals Gatting, Paul Collingwood, Andrew Flintoff and Alec Stewart.

Wales rugby great Gareth Edwards was also in attendance, as was England international Danny Cipriani, while Maynard’s Surrey team-mates and former Glamorgan colleagues also paid their respects.

Strauss said: “I first saw Tom when he was a teenager when Matthew was batting coach of England.

“He had grown up so well since then and was forging a name for himself in the game of cricket.

“I suppose that’s part of what makes it so tragic he is no longer with us.

“I obviously feel so much for Matthew, Sue and the family to have to go through this.

“But I think today is as much about celebrating Tom and what he achieved as it is saying goodbye.

“It’s obviously a very tough day for everyone who knew him, no more so than for members of his family.”

The England and Wales Cricket Board were represented by Managing Director Hugh Morris and Chief Executive David Collier, with former Glamorgan captain Morris delivering a glowing eulogy to a player who was tipped to represent his country in the near future.

Morris said: “The presence of so many members of the cricket community tells me Tom was not only a player blessed with extraordinary talent, but somebody whose sense of fun and enjoyment made him a hugely popular figure within our game.

Mike Gatting and Andrew Strauss, England captains of past and present, arrive for the funeral of Tom Maynard in Cardiff

“No-one will feel a greater sense of loss today than Matt, Sue, Ceri and family, and I know that many of you within the wider cricketing family will feel you have lost a treasured friend and team-mate; someone who enlivened the dressing room or lit-up any social occasion with warmth and good humour.”

He added: “What saddens me so much is that we have not only lost a hugely popular and colourful character, but one of our most exciting and explosive young batsmen.

“A player who could make the game look deceptively easy, a player who was surely destined for the highest reaches of the game, and a player whose authority and elegance at the crease reminded so many of his father.”

Maynard had long been regarded as one of English cricket’s bright young talents, having scored 71 runs from 75 balls when making his Glamorgan debut at the age of just 17.

He moved to Surrey in 2011 and toured Bangladesh with the England Lions last winter.