Bill Frindall took over from Arthur Wrigley, the BBC's long-standing scorer, on his sudden death in 1965 - Frindall wrote to the BBC on hearing the news, offering his services - and has remained a fixture of Test Match special ever since. He no longer scores for the plethora of ODIs but, aside from a brief spell when he was a journalist which prevented him working on TMS on Saturdays, he has been an ever present.
He has also become one of the most respected statisticians and also one of the most prolific, authoring a large quantity of books, such as the Wisden Book of Test Cricket and the Wisden Book of Cricket Records, as well as editing the prestigious Playfair Cricket Annual since 1986.
He was named Statistician of the Year by the Association of Cricket Statisticians and Historians in 1996 and in 1998 was awarded the honorary Degree of Doctor of Technology by Staffordshire University for his contribution to statistics. He was appointed an MBE for services to cricket and broadcasting in 2004.
In the often staid world of statistics, Frindall has been willing to stand his ground when he feels things are not right. He refused to acknowledge an ACS decision to award first-class status to old matches, which is why ACS statistics differ from those used in Wisden. In 2005 he slammed the ICC for its decision to award full ODI and Test status to the Super Series and Afro-Asia Cup, again leading to differences in stats offered by various outlets.
Martin Williamson
