Graham Thorpe would still be alive if England Cricket had done more after sacking as England assistant, claims widow

Graham Thorpe would still be alive if the England and Wales Cricket Board had done more after his sacking, his widow claims.

Thorpe, who played 100 tests for England, took his own life in August 2024, two-and-a-half years after losing his England assistant coaching role.

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In an exclusive interview with talkSPORT, his widow Amanda, says if Graham had been offered ways of staying better connected to England Cricket in the crucial months after his dismissal, ‘it is really clear [to her] that he would still be alive’.

She said: “If he’d had just a little bit of the support framework there to lean on a bit to just transition a bit more, it would have made all the difference.”

Amanda says Graham’s sacking was like the end of a long army career, not just leaving a normal job; the similarities are there – endless travelling, everything being done for you, the expectations of a nation on your shoulders.

At the inquest into his suicide, Coroner Jonathan Stevens said the termination of Thorpe’s contract ‘had a devastating effect on him’ because he ‘had lost his cricket family’.

He had also filmed a video in which he mocked police officers who were disbanding a group of players and coaches drinking at a hotel after the series, due to COVID restrictions.

Amanda says her late husband ‘was really teetering on the edge on that tour’ and that Graham was ‘absolutely gutted’ by the incident.

She added: “He went round on the flight back and apologised personally to every person on that tour.”

Graham had been receiving mental health treatment for 18 months before his sacking in 2022 – and after it the ECB did provide continued care.

Ten online counselling sessions were organised as a three-month extension of his employee medical insurance.

But Amanda describes this as ‘woeful’.

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She said: “As he went through these sessions, it was clear that he wasn’t coping. He was getting worse.

“We really did ask for help. I knew he needed more help than that. And, it wasn’t forthcoming.”

A month after the sacking, in March 2022, the counsellor delivering these online sessions made a written recommendation to Graham’s GP that he should receive in-person care at a residential facility.

This did not happen.

talkSPORT approached the counsellor to ask who was made aware of the need for residential care, but she said she was legally unable to add detail.

The ECB has not commented on whether it had any knowledge of the suggestion or whether Graham’s extended health insurance could have funded it.

By May 2022, six sessions into the course of ten, Graham made a serious attempt on his life, requiring two weeks of intensive care.

After learning this, the ECB then paid for a four-week stay in a north London hospital for neuro-rehabilitation.

But Amanda views this as the ECB only providing the full level of support required when Graham was ‘five minutes from death’.

By the end of 2022, Amanda claims her husband was also offered the chance to speak to the ECB about a scouting role for England.

Though she says she was grateful, she described the offer as ‘tragic’, believing that if this had come earlier, it would have made all the difference.

She continued: “It was too late, basically, after the crisis (in May 2022), he was very ill. He nearly lost his life. He had a stroke. We don’t know how that affected his brain after that.”

The coroner concluded that though there were ‘shortcomings’ in the care of Graham, these were by health professionals in the final months of his life.

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He could not ‘find any criticism in the ECB’s decision to terminate his contract’, and noted it had ‘funded treatment, hospital stays and extended his health treatment insurance’.

Graham played for England between 1993-2005, before coaching full-time for the ECB from 2009-2022.

The decision to dismiss him was communicated two weeks after the conclusion of a 4-0 Ashes series defeat in Australia.

However, Amanda claims the manner in which her husband was sacked has not faced sufficient scrutiny.

Though she understands that employers have to follow rules on medical privacy, Amanda thinks that if an employee is very ill, there has to be a way that bosses are made aware of this.

She argued: “The ECB might say, well, we didn’t know how ill he was. Although the doctors he was under did know, but then they sort of said, Oh, but there’s confidentiality.

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“There’s got to be some connection [between the ECB and their doctors].’

An ECB spokesperson described Graham as ‘a deeply admired and much-loved person’.

They said: “His loss has been felt deeply across the cricketing community and far beyond, and our thoughts and heartfelt sympathies remain with his wife Amanda, his children, and all those who loved him.

“Graham’s passing is a heart-breaking reminder of the challenges many face with mental health.

“His death was examined by a Coroner; the inquest was held earlier this year with full support from the ECB.

“We have met with Amanda to discuss her concerns and have been in regular contact with her and the wider family.”

But Amanda claims Graham felt totally let down by the ECB and, during his treatment, repeatedly told her; “they’ve beaten me”.

She acknowledges that following her husband’s death, she and their daughter met with the ECB, but says they left in tears.

“It occurs to me that, unlike the other coaches’ wives who’ve told me they’ve been on the wrong end of the ECB treatment, I don’t have a husband who needs to work in cricket anymore…so I can speak up.

But this is also about helping, you know, changing things and helping the next generation and making things better in the future.”

For anyone affected by issues raised in this interview and struggling to cope you can reach out to the trained professionals at Samaritans – they have a 24-hour helpline you can call – it’s 116 123 or you can visit Samaritans dot org.

Amanda Thorpe’s interview is part of the talkSPORT podcast Head Before Wicket, featuring interviews with Steve Harmison, Marcus Trescothick, Michael Vaughan, David Lloyd, Kate Cross and Graeme Swann.