Former Proteas skipper Clive Rice dies

Former allrounder Clive Rice, the first post-apartheid captain of South Africa, died Tuesday aged 66.

Rice, who had been suffering from a brain tumour, played most of his cricket during South Africa's 20-year isolation from the international game.

He was selected for a 1971-72 tour of Australia, which was cancelled because of opposition to the South African government's policy of apartheid.

When South Africa returned to the international fold in November 1991, Rice was appointed captain of a team which played three one-day internationals in India.

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India skipper Mohammed Azharuddin with Rice at Eden Gardens // Getty Images

But he was controversially omitted from the South Africa team which played in the 1992 World Cup in Australia and New Zealand with the selectors placing an emphasis on youth.

Former South Africa stars paid tribute to Rice, who played in 482 first-class matches for Transvaal, Natal and Nottinghamshire, scoring 26,331 runs at an average of 40.95.

He also took 930 wickets at an average of 22.49 before retiring in 1994.

Peter Kirsten called him "one of the most formidable, gifted and competitive all-rounders that any age of the game has ever seen".

In an era of notable all-rounders, including Ian Botham, Imran Khan, Kapil Dev and Richard Hadlee, Rice's exploits were limited to South African domestic cricket, the English county championship and Kerry Packer's World Series Cricket.

He excelled in them all.

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Hadlee, Rice, Kapil, Botham and Marshall in England in 1984

Rice captained the Transvaal 'Mean Machine' which dominated South Africa's domestic competitions during the 1980s, led Nottinghamshire to their first county championship in 52 years and was one of the stars in the Packer matches.

During his career he made more than 39 000 runs in first-class and limited overs cricket and took more than 1 500 wickets.

Rice, who turned 66 five days ago, died in his native South Africa just over four months after receiving robotic radiation treatment in the Indian city of Bangalore, which he described in an interview in March as "miraculous".

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Rice bats for Notts in 1985 // Getty Images

"Clive was our first captain and we knew him to be a great fighter all his life. Even during his last few years he put up a typically courageous and inspirational fight against the illness that had threatened him for a lengthy period of time," said Cricket South Africa Chief Executive, Haroon Lorgat. 

"Clive will always be remembered for captaining the Proteas on our historic first tour to India in 1991 and, as one of the great all-rounders and captains of the game, it was fitting that he got the chance to play international cricket even though he was at an age when most players might have called time on their careers."

South Africa's players will wear black armbands during the second Test against Bangladesh in Dhaka, starting on Thursday.