Mick Hunt, MCC‘s legendary former head groundsman, who oversaw pitch preparation at Lord’s for 49 years, has died.
Hunt joined the Lord’s groundstaff in December 1969 and became head groundsman in 1985 following the retirement of Jim Fairbrother.
He finally stepped down from the role in 2018, after a career that spanned 81 Test matches, more than 80 men’s and women’s limited-overs games (including eight World Cup finals across formats) and countless county fixtures for Middlesex.
Angus Fraser, the former England and Middlesex seamer whose own association with Lord’s spans five decades, led the tributes to Hunt on the club website.
“In the long and rich history of this wonderful ground it is hard to believe that anybody has done more to maintain its beauty than Mick Hunt,” Fraser wrote.
“To say that Mick was a character would be an understatement. He was an absolute legend. He cared deeply for the turf he looked after for 49 years, and did his utmost to ensure it looked and played immaculately, no matter the importance of the game that was taking place.”
Hunt’s final Test pitch was prepared for India’s visit in August 2018, but arguably his most challenging had come six years before that, in the wake of the 2012 Olympics, when Lord’s was the venue for the Archery competition.
England’s Test against South Africa took place just 12 days after the conclusion of that event, and in addition to preparing the wicket at short notice after the venue had been under the auspices of the IOC, Hunt’s challenge included returfing almost a third of the outfield following the dismantling of temporary stands that had been erected either side of the central strip.
South Africa won a thrilling Test match by 51 runs, and the pitch was subsequently rated as very good by the match referee. Hunt was subsequently named world groundsman of the year for the achievement.
