Here’s why Andrew Symonds was popularly called as ‘Roy’

The cricketing world is grieving over the loss of former Australian cricketer Andrew Symonds. The legendary cricketer was involved in a car accident near Townsville in Queensland on Saturday night. The Emergency team tried to rescue him, but he could not survive.

Symonds was one of the finest white-ball cricketers ever to play the game. He was a destructive batsman, a decent off-spinner, and an absolute livewire on the field. He played a pivotal role in Australia's success in the limited-overs game during the golden age of Australian cricket.

Symonds was known as 'Roy' among his friends and teammates, and the tale behind the name is quite interesting. The Western Australian earned his nickname as a youngster from his sports coach, who compared him to former basketball star Leroy Loggins. For the  unvsersed, Leroy is a retired American-Australian basketball player who played in the NBA from 1981 to 2001. And thus came the name, 'Roy'.

In 1998, Symonds made his international debut. He went on to appear in 198 One-Day Internationals for Australia, scoring 5088 runs, including six hundreds and 30 half-centuries. In the 50-over format, he also took 133 wickets.

Besides, Symonds appeared in 26 Tests and 14 Twenty20 Internationals, scoring 1462 and 337 runs, respectively. He claimed 24 Test wickets and 8 in the shortest format.

Cricket Australia chairman Lachlan Henderson in an official statement said that the country lost another legend. He also acknowledged Symonds' contribution to Australian cricket.

"Australian cricket has lost another of its very best. Andrew was a generational talent who was instrumental in Australia’s success at World Cups and as part of Queensland’s rich cricket history. He was a cult figure to many, treasured by his fans and friends. Our deepest sympathies are with Andrew’s family, teammates, and friends on behalf of Australian cricket," he said.

In addition to representing Australia, Symonds played for the now-defunct Deccan Chargers and Mumbai in the Indian T20 League. The all-rounder also represented Kent, Lancashire, Surrey, and Gloucestershire in county cricket.