Death of Willis hit Lloyd hard
cricketers. At a Parliamentary hearing, Rafiq said he had been told Lloyd said ‘a clubhouse is the lifeblood of a club, and Asian players don’t go in there’ and that ‘getting (subscriptions) out of Asian players is like getting blood out of a stone’. Lloyd said he deeply regretted his actions and Rafiq, who was later found to have made anti-Semitic comments himself in 2011, accepted his apology.
Yesterday Lloyd released an emotional statement. In it, the former Lancashire all-rounder said he had ‘wonderful memories’ of his time at Sky and had been ‘lucky to travel the world sharing Ashes highs and lows, World Cup wins and losses, heroics and heartaches with you all’.
He added that the death of fellow pundit Bob Willis in 2019, along with the departures of former England skippers David Gower and Sir Ian Botham, and West Indies legend Michael Holding, contributed to his decision. ‘The commentary box feels a little emptier,’ said Lloyd. ‘And so I feel it is time for me to do the same and move on to the next chapter.’
Sportsmail understands talkSPORT will shortly announce they have the rights for England’s new year tour of West Indies. Lloyd was part of the station’s coverage of the 2019 Caribbean tour. This may pave the way for him to be a key part of their team. Tributes poured in from Lloyd’s Sky colleagues. Rob Key described him as ‘the best person I know, by some distance’ adding ‘what a sad day’. Mark Butcher tweeted: ‘Been an absolute honour to know & work with this man for 24 years’. Ebony Rainford-Brent said he had been ‘an absolute joy to work with’.
A Sky spokesman said Lloyd has been a ‘star of the commentary box for over two decades with an extraordinary ability to inform and entertain’. He added: ‘He is much loved and respected by his fellow commentators and production team who cherish the time spent working with him. Thank you Bumble for your service.’