Robin Jackman diagnosed with cancer

Former England cricketer-turned-commentator Robin Jackman has been diagnosed with cancer and will undergo seven weeks of radiotherapy following two operations to remove malignant tumours from his vocal cords. The 67-year-old’s treatment will be followed by four weeks’ rest and he hopes to be back in the commentary box early next year. ‘It’s not the prettiest, but I got it early and I’m confident I’ll be fine,’ Jackman was quoted as saying in the South African media. ‘I won’t be in Australia, but I will surely root for the Proteas,’ he added. Australia is set to host South Africa in a much-awaited series starting Friday.Jackman played four Tests and 15 ODIs for England and was involved with Surrey for 16 seasons since1966. He took more than 1400 first-class wickets and scored 5681 runs. Jackman’s diagnosis comes less than a month after another former England cricketer and commentator Tony Greig revealed he was being treated for cancer. Last month, former New Zealand captain Martin Crowe was also diagnosed with lymphoma, a type of cancer.