Sir Donald Bradman, rated the greatest player in the history of cricket, died Sunday at age 92, sending his native Australia and the sport's followers around the world into mourning.

He had not played for 50 years, but his fame endured among millions of fans who have seen him only in flickering film clips from black-and-white newsreels. Among them is the former South African President Nelson Mandela, whose first question to an Australian visitor on his release from 27 years of imprisonment in 1990 was, ''Is Sir Donald Bradman still alive?''

In a career from 1928 to 1948, playing against British Commonwealth national teams, Bradman's winning scores, and rare failures, interrupted news broadcasts in Australia, made banner headlines, delayed business and government meetings and set spectators and experts searching for words of praise worthy of his skills. So it was for his death, especially in other cricket strongholds like India, Sri Lanka, New Zealand and the Caribbean.

The Australian Parliament suspended debate yesterday to hear eulogies. Arrangements for state memorial ceremonies began, and flags were lowered in hamlets and suburbs across the Australian continent.