Cricket fans have taken to social media to commend Allan Border for his courageous display on the opening day of the first Test, but have also been left heartbroken over the Aussie legend’s noticeable decline. The Australian cricket legend is battling Parkinson’s disease and has stepped away from his media commitments in the last 12 months.

Border was a regular commentator and analyst on Fox Cricket, but has stepped away from the spotlight as he battles the debilitating disease. But on Friday he made a brave return to the public eye to carry the trophy that bears his name.

He helped Sunil Gavaskar bring out the Border-Gavaskar Trophy before the first ball of the opening Test in Perth, and was on hand during the coin toss. He then posed for photos with captains Pat Cummins and Jasprit Bumrah, before a cameo in the commentary box with Fox Cricket.

Fans were full of praise for Border for his courageous return, but were left heartbroken by his noticeable struggles. The former Test captain’s movements and voice have both clearly changed due his health battle, leaving him markedly different to what many cricket fans remember.

Cricket fans saddened over Allan Border’s awful plight

The 69-year-old was first diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease in 2016, but only revealed it publicly in 2023. Many suspected something wasn’t right when he missed the Australian Cricket Awards in January last year and had to get his wife to step in and present the Allan Border Medal in his absence.

“It is a disease that affects a lot of Australians and getting worse, and we need to do something a little bit more about it,” he said earlier this year. “There’s over 13,000 people that have developed Parkinson’s that are of working age. If I wanted to keep working in the area that I was in, which was TV, I can’t because it’s quite obvious I’ll get nervous and that some of the symptoms come through – there’s 13,000 people in a similar vein.

“When I was told I was suffering, my first image was of (boxer) Muhammad Ali and the Olympic torch (in 1996), I just thought people suffered from a tremor. But there’s about 100,000 different ways of it presenting.”

Allan Border lifts the lid on devastating battle

As well as reducing his work in the media, Border has previously opened up about how the disease has affected his daily life. “As soon as I walked in the door (the doctor) just said, ‘look Allan I can just tell you have Parkinson’s disease, I am sorry to tell you’. Just like that, you could have knocked me over with a feather, basically,” he revealed this year.

“I knew something wasn’t quite right, but I didn’t think it was that bad. It was just a strange feeling and a strange trip home. My better half Jane was with me and we just thought, ‘bloody hell what does this actually mean?’

“I’m not running any marathons anymore, but apart from that things are pretty good. I’m not so much scared, but I am worried, yeah, about that slow decline process. I am worried about that and I have sort of taken the route that the less I know the better, where as Jane my wife has gone the other way and she knows everything.

“I do get lectured quite often about, you haven’t been for a walk for a couple of days or what are you doing drinking all those beers? And all the stuff I shouldn’t be doing. But I am being kept on the straight and narrow by Jane and a good medical team.”

Border scored 11,174 runs at Test level and is widely regarded as one of Australia’s finest cricketers. He averaged 50.56 in his Test career and his tally of runs is only second amongst Australians behind Ricky Ponting (13,378).