England cricket great Graham Thorpe’s wife raises awareness on mental health struggles after husband’s death

Graham Thorpe raises his bat during England's test win over the Black Caps in 2002. Photo / Photosport

Warning: This article is about suicide and may be distressing for some readers.

Graham Thorpe’s wife, Amanda Thorpe, says she disagrees with the view that taking one’s life is “selfish” after watching her husband’s long battle with his mental health before his death last year.

Thorpe, a much-loved cricketer with England and Surrey, who retired in 2005, died in August 2024. Thorpe, who was 55, had battled with depression and anxiety for many years.

Writing in the 2025 edition of the Wisden Almanack, which is out next week and has been serialised in the Sunday Times, Amanda Thorpe wrote: “He tried many therapies and medications – he tried so hard to beat it.

“But in the end I feel something became wrong with the way Graham’s brain was wired – a chemical imbalance. He also felt immense shame about how he was, but of course there should be no stigma to suffering as he did.

“Having watched it play out, I could see it is a physical illness – and it is real. It felt like he was in the grip of a sickness he just couldn’t get out of. I would like to raise awareness and increase understanding of this horrible disease.

“Some people say suicide is selfish. But I have so much compassion for what he went through. He didn’t deserve it. No one does.”

Graham Thorpe scored 200 not out against the Black Caps in 2002. Photo / Photosport

Thorpe played 100 tests for England, averaging 45 with the bat and scoring 16 centuries.

He later rose to become England’s batting coach and was a mentor to Joe Root, the national team’s greatest run-scorer.

Thorpe worked for England during the pandemic, when the team played under extreme “biosecure-bubble” conditions, which his wife believes contributed to the decline of his mental health.

“Graham found it really difficult working under Covid restrictions – and it started to take a toll on his mental health,” she wrote.

“So when England were beaten in the Covid Ashes of 2021-22 in Australia, and he lost his coaching job, he wasn’t in a great state of mind.

“Despite his appointment as coach of Afghanistan, his anxiety and depression escalated to a point where he became very unwell.”