Richie Benaud no more

Former Australia captain Richie Benaud, the celebrated 'voice of cricket', has died at the age of 84 after battling skin cancer, prompting a flood of tributes from around the world.

A giant figure in the game both on and off the field, Benaud died in his sleep in a Sydney hospice late on Thursday, his employer Channel Nine reported, citing family.

Benaud said last November he was fighting a skin cancer on his head and his public appearances became rare in recent years.

After 35 years calling Australian cricket for Channel Nine, Benaud was unable to take his spot behind the microphone in the summer of 2013/14 after crashing his vintage car near his home in Sydney's beachside suburb of Coogee.

Flags flew at half-mast at the Sydney Cricket Ground, Benaud's home as a first-class cricketer for New South Wales, and flowers were laid at his statue at the venue.

His family were offered a state funeral by the country's Prime Minister Tony Abbott.