Bob Willis - Commentary

Commentary

After retiring from playing cricket, Willis established himself as a television commentator on Sky. He began a television career in 1985, and was initially in partnership with Botham in the commentary box, "his laconic style did not suit all" and he was dropped from the "front-line commentary duties". Willis appeared on BBC TV Cricket between 1989 and 1999 as a summariser before joining Sky Sports in 2000. He also appeared on David Tomlinson's This is Your Life in 1991, A Question of Sport in 2004 and 20 to 1 in 2005.

Willis has continued to work for Sky Sports, largely commentating in the county game, where he has been vocal on the need for changes in English cricket, particularly through a group of former players known as the Cricket Reform Group. He was critical of Michael Atherton during the England tour of Zimbabwe in 1997. In 2006 he criticised the then England coach Duncan Fletcher's practices, England's performance in the 2006-07 Ashes, and was vocal in calling for the retirement of out-of-form national captain Michael Vaughan in 2008.

Willis has attracted detractors due to his somewhat melancholic style. The Independent commentated on the 1995 Texaco Trophy that Willis had "trenchant content, dismal delivery. As a player Willis had trouble getting to sleep. As a commentator he struggles to stay awake. His voice remains on one note – the drone of your neighbour's mower." Andrew Smith wrote in 1999 that "On Sky TV, Willis is often discourteous and unfair to players. Didn't he ever make a mistake?" though the Daily Mail, for whom Willis had begun writing, defended his commentary style. CricInfo's launching of two polls on cricket commentary both returned negative views of Willis' "hyper-critical" commentary. Willis received only 15% of the vote, above only Dermot Reeve and Allott.