Bridgetown, May 11: Renowned West Indies cricket writer and commentator today passed away at the age of 75 following a long illness.

Cozier covered almost every West Indies series since 1962, and is one of the most respected cricket writer, broadcaster and historian to have come out of the Caribbean.

He had been hospitalised on May 3 for tests related to infections in the neck and legs. Cozier, whose father Jimmy was also a cricket writer, began his commentary career with the Australia tour of the West Indies in 1965.

"Deeply saddened to hear of the passing of Tony Cozier today," the ICC posted on Twitter.

Deeply saddened to hear of the passing of Tony Cozier today. One of the truly great voices of cricket. A huge loss for the cricket community

— ICC (@ICC) May 11, 2016

"One of the truly great voices of cricket. A huge loss for the cricket community," the world body added.

"So so Sad ... Forget all the Great players .. Tony Cozier was the reason I loved West Indian Cricket ... #RIPTony," tweeted former England captain Michael Vaughan.

So so Sad ... Forget all the Great players .. Tony Cozier was the reason I loved West Indian Cricket ... #RIPTony

— Michael Vaughan (@MichaelVaughan) May 11, 2016

Commenting on the sad news, Damien O'Donohoe, Chief Executive Officer of the Caribbean Premier League said: "It was with great sadness that we learned of Tony's sad passing.

"To many fans across the Caribbean and beyond he was quite simply the voice of West Indies cricket. His love of cricket was a positive influence in telling the story across a golden era for West Indies cricket and he was hugely respected and loved, in equal measure, by fans of the game.

"For more than 50 years Tony's voice has resonated through television, radio or the written word in homes across the cricketing world and he was admired internationally for his passion, insight and enthusiasm," he said.

PTI