Graham Thorpe took his own life, reveals wife

Trigger warning - Suicide. Details in the story might be triggering for some people. 

The England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) announced the passing of former England middle-order batter Graham Thorpe on August 5. However, the cause of his demise wasn’t revealed in the statement. 

Recently, in an interview with The Times, Thorpe’s wife, Amanda revealed that he had been suffering from serious mental health issues for the last two years and that eventually made him take his own life. 

“For the past couple of years, Graham had been suffering from major depression and anxiety. This led him to make a serious attempt on his life in May 2022, which resulted in a prolonged stay in an intensive care unit,” Amanda Thorpe said. 

“Despite glimpses of hope and of the old Graham, he continued to suffer from depression and anxiety, which at times got very severe. We supported him as a family and he tried many, many treatments but unfortunately, none of them really seemed to work.”

❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️ pic.twitter.com/NeaX5dDwzg

— Ben Stokes (@benstokes38) August 5, 2024

Notably, Thorpe was made the head coach of Afghanistan in March 2022, but he didn’t end up taking the role due to health-related reasons. Thorpe continued to struggle in these last two years with his mental health, and his condition really deteriorated with time. 

"Graham was renowned as someone who was very mentally strong on the field and he was in good physical health. But mental illness is a real disease and can affect anyone. Despite having a wife and two daughters whom he loved and who loved him, he did not get better. 

"He was so unwell in recent times and he really did believe that we would be better off without him and we are devastated that he acted on that and took his own life.”

Thorpe’s family decided to reveal the reasons behind his demise despite the sensitive nature of the information. They wish to destigmatise mental health problems that took the life of their own. The family is also looking to start a foundation in his name. 

“There is nothing to hide and it is not a stigma,” Amanda Thorpe said. 

“We were trying to help him get better before and trying to protect him, which is why we said nothing. This is the time now to share the news, however horrible it is. We’ve wanted to be able to talk and share and we’d now like to raise awareness, too.”

Thorpe scored 6,744 runs for England in Test cricket at an average of 44.66, with 16 centuries, including a hundred on debut. He also played 82 ODI games, averaging 37.18 with the bat. After his cricketing career, he took up various coaching and batting consultant roles for teams, including England and Surrey. In 2006, Queen Elizabeth awarded him the Member of the British Empire (MBE). 

Apart from his wife, Thorpe is survived by his daughters Kitty (22) and Emma (19).