Geoffrey Boycott (born 1940) is a former Yorkshire and England opening batsman - one of the finest ever. In a test match career dating from 1964 to 1982, Boycott established himself as one of the all time legends of the game. A proud Yorkshireman, Boycott followed up his playing career by becoming a well respected commentator.

Boycott was born in Fitzwilliam and began playing county cricket for Yorkshire in 1962. He began an illustrious Test career only two years later in the first Test of the summer against Australia. He went on to score 8,114 runs in an 18 year Test career spanning 108 tests. He was the first England cricketer to pass 8,000 Test runs and is still fourth on England's all-time run scoring list. His average of 47.73 runs over 193 innings is better than any other England player since 1970. His Test career included 22 centuries (an England record that he holds jointly with Wally Hammond and Colin Cowdrey). In 1977 he scored 191 against Australia in the fourth Test at Headingley, becoming the first cricketer to score his one hundredth first class century in a Test match.

Boycott was always a controversial figure and spent three years from 1974-77 in self-imposed exile from the England team. He claimed he had simply lost his appetite for Test cricket, but the move may also have been linked to the appointments of Mike Denness and then Tony Greig as England Captain in preference to himself. Critics claimed the period of exile enabled him to avoid fast-bowlers Lillee, Thomson, Roberts and Holding at their peaks but he came back to face the West Indies ferocious pace quartet at its most fearsome in the late 70s and early 80s.

His batting style in many ways reflected his personality, dour and dogged, and he was renowned for his ability to occupy the crease for hours. In his "comeback" Test against Australia at Trent Bridge in 1977 he famously ran out Randall in front of his home crowd before going to make a century. In this match he batted on each of the first three days in the first innings, scoring 107. He then scored 80 not out in the second innings which spanned days four and five.

Boycott was appointed vice-captain for the ensuing tour of Pakistan and New Zealand that winter, and took over as captain in 1978 when Brearley was injured.

As well as a batsman, Boycott was also a medium-pace bowler, but was never regarded as a genuine all rounder. He took seven wickets at Test level at an average of 54.57.

As a commentator Boycott has renewed his renown, with his 'pull-no-punches' style in contrast to the 'let's-try-not-to-offend' style of most of his fellow commentators. In particular he is known for criticizing players. Once, after witnessing a dropped catch, he said "I reckon my mum could have caught that in her pinny", and in 2005 he mocked the Australian captain Ricky Ponting for electing to bowl first on a flat track, saying he was a "nice man" for being so generous to the England team. He is also characterised by his pre-match pitch reports, where he would stick a key into the wicket and assess its qualities (moisture and hardness). However due to a change in the cricket laws, this is no longer permitted.

He continued to commentate for the station, along with various satellite and Asian channels, until 2003, when his career was further threatened by throat cancer. Having successfully undergone chemotherapy, Boycott's career appears to be enjoying a renaissance as he returned to high-profile commentating with Channel 4, which had, in the interim period, taken over from the BBC in televising England's home Test games. As of winter 2005, Boycott has rejoined the BBC's TMS to provide commentary for England's 2005 tour of Pakistan. In January 2006, Boycott joined Asian channel Ten Sports. His opinions, as ever, are strong and sometimes controversial. He delivered the Colin Cowdrey Lecture in 2005.

He commentated on highlights of England's home games from 2006-2010 on Channel 5.

A true Yorkshire legend and a worthy addition to the Hall of Fame.