Richie Benaud has said he will retire from television commentary next year, ending a second career spanning almost 50 years. "I'll be doing Australian cricket next year, 2010, but I don't do any television at all anywhere else now and when I finish next year, I'll be doing other things," he told Macquarie Radio.
Benaud moved into television commentary soon after retiring from international cricket in 1964 and joined the Channel Nine team in 1977. He soon became an icon of sports broadcasting for his crisp style and dry humour - and sharp dress sense. In 2005 English fans mourned the end of 42 years of Benaud's commentary in the country after the free-to-air Channel 4's contract ended with the ECB. The same year Benaud was voted Australia's most popular commentator in a poll conducted by the Wisden Cricketer and Cricinfo.
At the time, he said he wanted to continue writing books, which he had begun doing long before making a career in television.