Cricket Books

Book SynopsisBatting for Time: The Fight to Keep English Cricket Alive is the exploration of a sport in existential crisis. In a rapidly changing sporting and social landscape, county cricket - an institution whose history spans more than 150 years - finds itself confronted with the most uncertain period in its long history. The proliferation of lucrative global franchise leagues has threatened to leave behind a member-owned English structure deep-rooted in the Victorian era. Pitting traditionalists against modernisers, and romantics against pragmatists, the need for change has sparked a host of civil wars, creating deep divisions among those who care for the English game.Using the 2023 season as a backdrop, Batting for Time explores the precarious state of English cricket, asking what it is we expect from our domestic game, who it primarily exists for and where things might go in the future. What must English cricket do to survive?

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Book SynopsisThe Club uncovers the fascinating history of cricket's world governing body as it evolved from the Imperial Cricket Council, established in 1909 to bring together the major cricket-playing countries of the Empire, into the ICC, a multi-billion-dollar business dominated by the Indian Board of Control and its allies.

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Book SynopsisOf all the rules governing sport, the laws of cricket are among the oldest. The first written rules of 1744 survive uniquely on the border of a piece of linen at the MCC Museum of Cricket. They were drawn up by certain ‘Noblemen and Gentlemen’ at a time when gambling on cricket matches was rife. The ‘laws’ were codified to ensure a fair outcome when so much was riding on the game. The story of the evolution of these laws and how they affected the game is a fascinating and seldom told chapter in the history of cricket. Following on from the success of The Rules of Association Football 1863 and The Original Rules of Rugby, this book reproduces the complete text of the original laws and is illustrated with images from the unique manuscript held at the MCC as well as images of the game from the eighteenth, nineteenth and twentieth centuries. It also includes what is thought to be the first known image of cricket dating from a fourteenth-century manuscript now in the Bodleian Library.

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Book SynopsisThe perfect gift for every cricket fanWhen was the first Ashes held? Who holds the highest individual Test runs score? And what exactly is a silly mid-off? Find the answer to all these and more inside The Cricket Pocket Bible, a pocket compendium of cricketing trivia and titbits about one of the world''s most popular sports. Inside, debate the teams and the triumphs, defend the clubs and the competitions and discover how the quintessentially ''English'' game of cricket became so popular in places as far afield as Australia, India and the West Indies. You’ll also find practical information in The Cricket Pocket Bible - like the rules of playing cricket, how to kit yourself out in cricket gear, how to explain all the cricketing fielding positions and even how to bowl a googly. This pocket guide will take you through all the highlights of cricket, from the longest Test Match to the most unusual cricket match locations. F

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Book SynopsisCricket’s Strangest Tales is a fascinating collection of cricketing weirdness – and there’s a lot of it to choose from! Within these pages you’ll find a game that was played on ice, meet a plague of flying ants who failed to dampen players’ enthusiasm, and examples of the grand old tradition of one-armed teams versus one-legged teams. The stories in this book are bizarre, fascinating, hilarious, and, most importantly, true. Fully revised, redesigned and updated with a selection of new material for 2016, this book is the perfect gift for the cricket fanatic in your life. Word count: 45,000 words

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Book SynopsisIn Cricket Changed My Life Annie Chave throws the spotlight on a diverse medley ofpeople, whose very variety highlights the fact that cricket can benefit anyone, that the game's reach isnot confined to players or even to fields of play.

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Book SynopsisAs a player and administrator, Ashley Giles has seen it all. From hitting the winning shot in the decisive Testof the greatest Ashes series, to steering a sinking ship through choppy waters as the pandemic threatenedto submerge the whole game, Giles has been at the heart of some of English cricket's biggest moments thiscentury.

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Book SynopsisIt's Britain's hottest summer since 1976 and English cricket is in a sweat of transformation. The public is no longer interested in County Championship games, traditional touchstone of the calendar. Fans prefer a bit of flash, bang, wallop – or so the experts tell us. Where though does that leave the twenty minor counties – strung out from Northumberland to Norfolk to Cornwall – who for the past one hundred and twenty-five years have fancied themselves the stepping-stone between regional club and first class county competitions? A level of the game seen as either an ex-professionals' graveyard or the last refuge of blazered old duffers is in a struggle for its very existence. And come 2020, the venerable Minor Counties Championship will indeed be blown away, like dandelion seeds on the breeze, replaced by the newly-branded and 'more marketable' National Counties Championship. At least that was the plan. In 2018, no-one has yet heard of Covid-19. What they do know is that this threat to their competition is existential and the modernisers at Lord's are to blame, far more interested in such innovations as a proposed new 'Hundred' than bolstering that which has stood the test of time. Granted full access to committee and squad, Tony Hannan, author of Underdogs – A Year in the Life of a Rugby League Town, spent a season with Cumberland CCC amid the lakes, fells and mountains of Cumbria. And as might have been expected in such dramatic terrain, he tells a story full of ups and downs – complete with one or two surprises. Skippered by former Durham player Gary Pratt – who as substitute fielder ran out Australia captain Ricky Ponting during the 2005 Ashes – Cumberland's expenses-only nomads are nevertheless just one important thread in a yarn stretching well beyond the boundaries of Cumbria. The Wicket Men is a cricket book unlike any other. It draws stumps on a small but fascinating aspect of a pastime whose rhythms and rituals, while endlessly evolving, are rooted firmly in the English folk tradition.

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Book SynopsisA collection of fifty informative and anecdotal articles by cricketers as well as leading writers on cricket, Indian Cricket: Then and Now is a book that cricket aficionados of all ages will enjoy.

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Book SynopsisTHIS AUTUMN'S MUST-HAVE AUTOBIOGRAPHY FROM CRICKET LEGEND, JIMMY ANDERSON21 years, 188 Test Matches, 704 Test Wickets. This is Jimmy's story: an intimate, honest reflection told with his trademark humility and dry humour. From growing up in. Burnley as an outsider, isolated at school, bunking off, dreaming of being somewhere - anywhere - else, to dominating the 22 yards of the wicket as part of the deadliest England attack ever assembled. Jimmy takes us inside the dressing room, to those unforgettable moments: his debut under Nasser Hussain, facing off the Aussies with Monty Panesar, Kevin Pietersen's 'textgate' and that Mitchell Johnson incident. He reflects on the intense rivalries with Michael Clarke and Sachin Tendulkar and the burgeoning friendships with Alastair Cook and Stuart Broad. Delving behind the cricket, Jimmy reveals his experiences of personal loss alongside the pain of professional injury, and the strength he found from his marriage and the arrival of his two children. Finding the Edge is a front-row seat at the greatest games of the last two decades as England journey from perennial losers to world number one. But, above all, it is a coming-of-age story that reveals the real Jimmy Anderson: vulnerable, introspective, relentlessly determined, constantly evolving - a bowler unequalled, a career like no other.

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Book SynopsisWho Only Cricket Know tells the story of the second most controversial tour in English cricket history after Bodyline and has not been revisited since two tour books came out in the immediate aftermath. The cricket is dramatic, the key characters fascinating, and it is awash with incidents on and off the field, many of them involving race and social class. This was the first tour in which MCC travelled by plane (although they returned home on the boat) and the first in they were captained by a professional player – Len Hutton. It was also Hutton’s Yorkshire teammate Fred Trueman’s debut tour and for the opposition, the Three Ws were in their pomp and a young man called Garfield Sobers made his international bow. David Woodhouse has meticulously researched every aspect of the tour as well as carrying out a number of interviews, retaining the nuances and subtleties of the different levels of the story. He takes us through the lead-up to the tour, the warm-up games and the five Test matches, as well as the recriminations that took place both at Lord’s and in the West Indies in the tour’s aftermath.

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Book SynopsisFrom one of India's finest writers, thinkers and commentators, a memoir of a love affair with cricket.As a fan, player, writer, scholar, controversialist and administrator, Ram Guha has spent a life with cricket.In this book, Guha offers both a brilliantly charming memoir and a charter of the life of cricket in India.He traces the game across every level at which it is played: school, college, club, state and country. He offers vivid portraits of local heroes, provincial icons and international stars.Following the narrative of his life intertwined and in love with the sport, Guha captures the magic of bat and ball that has ensnared billions.Trade Review A DAILY TELEGRAPH BEST SPORTS BOOK OF THE YEAR 2020 ‘Guha is a distinguished historian, biographer of Gandhi, a courageous political activist — and also an absolute cricket nut … Watching a serious intellectual grapple with his own relationship with sport is always revealing … [A] passionate, unique book … Guha’s totally in love, that’s the thing – and it’s the love that shines through on every page’Ed Smith, Financial Times ‘Guha also fills the same role within India that Scyld Berry and Gideon Haigh do in England and Australia. In other words, he is the deepest and wisest chronicler of his cricketing nation’Daily Telegraph, Best Sport Books of the Year, 2020 ‘Guha is an historian, environmentalist, journalist and political biographer of wide-ranging distinction … An engagingly generous celebration of cricket and cricketers, Indian and firangis alike … A book that should not be ignored’David Crane, Spectator ‘Delightful … Guha, one of India’s best-known historians and public intellectuals, is a bona fide cricket obsessive … His deep knowledge of the game allows him to bring a historian’s perspective when writing about players … The Commonwealth of Cricket is a return to his cherished first love. It should be celebrated’Soumya Bhattacharya, New Statesman ‘Powerful … The Commonwealth of Cricket is a memoir of his lifelong obsession with the game … It is, not surprisingly, a delightful read – but it also carries a political message’Emma John, Guardian ‘Guha’s book is timely … It is also at odds with the way many see the game in India today … In that sense it is a love-letter to a game as it was and can be again’Mike Atherton, The Times ‘Enchanting … Deeply enriching … He writes about the game as he first knew it, with the unguarded fondness of youth’Paul Edwards, The Cricketer

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Book SynopsisThe Know the Game Skills series is the perfect introduction to a sport for every budding player.Each book aims to teach young players the basic skills they need to start enjoying their sport - by giving plenty of simple practice drills and showing how the star players do it.Cricket: Batting aims to teach the basic skills needed to become successful with the bat. It teaches young players how to:- Control the bat - Face a bowler - Play all the shots - Read a bowler - Understand the field - Run between the wicketsClearly illustrated and written by a professional coach, this book will give every player all the skills they need to enjoy cricket.Table of ContentsIntroduction Equipment Perfect preparation Front foot defence Back foot defence Leaving the ball Front foot driving Back foot driving The square cut The pull The leg glance The sweep shot Good running

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Book SynopsisGeoffrey Boycott is one of the most outspoken and knowledgeable voices on cricket - but this book opens up a whole, new personal side to his life

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Book SynopsisCricket: A Portrait of a Game is photography in the tradition of the great 20th century photographers. It captures the heart of the game from the commentators chatting in the broadcast booth, players relaxing in the team rooms, to never before photos of Shane Warne. Distinguished cricket writer and photographer, Mark Ray, has roamed the world of cricket capturing the greats of the cricket-playing nations as well as unique portraits of the world of cricket. This is a stunning portrait of the game played across the globe and loved by generations: it documents the spirit that surrounds it, from the stars behind the scenes – unselfconscious and uninhibited – to those that support the game, the fans, the groundsmen the umpires, and the commentators. A rich and fascinating portrait of a game much loved.

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Book SynopsisThe baggy green cap worn by Australian Test players is an icon. It's the pride of Australian cricket. With the face of the game everchanging, the wearing of the baggy green has always been the pinnacle for Australian players. The baggy green cap is revered by everyone with a connection to Australian cricket. The Baggy Green book charts its evolution with reflections from many past and present Test players. It explores the cap's history, mystique and worth, with insight from the sport's greatest figures, museums and leading auction houses. With over 100 colour photos and great design, this is a book every Australian cricket fan should have on their bookshelves.

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Book SynopsisA true-life sporting memoir of one of the best batsman in the game who stunned the cricket world when he prematurely ended his own England career. Trescothick's brave and soul-baring account of his mental frailties opens the way to a better understanding of the unique pressures experienced by modern-day professional sportsmen.At 29, Marcus Trescothick was widely regarded as one of the batting greats. With more than 5,000 Test runs to his name and a 2005 Ashes hero, some were predicting this gentle West Country cricket nut might even surpass Graham Gooch''s record to become England''s highest ever Test run scorer.But the next time Trescothick hit the headlines it was for reasons no one but a handful of close friends and colleagues could have foreseen.On Saturday 25 February 2006, four days before leading England into the first Test against India in place of the injured captain Vaughan, Trescothick was out for 32 in the second innings of the final warm-up match. As he walked from the field he fought to calm the emotional storm that was raging inside him, at least to hide it from prying eyes. In the dressing room he broke down in tears, overwhelmed by a blur of anguish, uncertainty and sadness he had been keeping at bay for longer than he knew.Within hours England''s best batsman was on the next flight home. His departure was kept secret until after close of play when coach Duncan Fletcher told the stunned media his acting captain had quit the tour for ''personal, family reasons.''Until now, the full, extraordinary story of what happened that day and why, of what preceded his breakdown has never been told. He reveals for the first time that he almost flew home from the 2004 tour to South Africa of what caused it and of what followed his comeback to the England side and a second crushing breakdown nine months later that left him unable to continue the 2006-07 Ashes tour down under.Coming Back to Me replaces the myths and rumours with the truth as Trescothick talks with engaging openness and enthusiasm about his rise to the top of international cricket; and describes with equal frankness his tortured descent into private despair.Trade Review'The finest [sports book] of them all.' Sunday Express 'sad but utterly compelling' Observer 'A moving document…makes for fascinating reading.' Independent 'grim but compelling reading' Independent on Sunday 'an honest and humbling read' Glasgow Herald 'One of the most important publications of the year…For a top-flight sportsman to write so candidly about his battle with depression took exceptional courage.' Sunday Telegraph 'This year's winner of the WIlliam Hill Sports Book of the Year prize is, in many ways, an unusual account. For a start, it's actually good, which is a rarity for a current sporting autobiography.' Daily Telegraph 'Gripping throughout' , 'A frank, open-hearted account of a still-taboo subject.' Five star review in Spin Magazine

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Book SynopsisWINNER OF THE WISDEN BOOK OF THE YEARAs a young boy of eight, Jonny Bairstow was dealt a cruel blow. His father David Bluey' Bairstow, the combative and very popular wicketkeeper and captain of Yorkshire, took his own life at the age of forty-six.David left behind Jonny, Jonny's sister Becky and half-brother Andy, and his wife Janet, who had recently been diagnosed with cancer at the time of his death. From these incredibly tough circumstances, Jonny and his family strived to find an even keel and come to terms with the loss of their father and husband.Jonny found his way through his dedication to sport. He was a gifted and natural athlete, with potential careers ahead of him in rugby and football, but he eventually chose cricket and came to build a career that followed in his father's footsteps, eventually reaching the pinnacle of the sport and breaking the record for most Test runs in a year by a wicketkeeper.Written with multiple-award-winning writer Duncan Hamilton, this is an incrTrade Review‘Incredible… outstanding… A Clear Blue Sky is not just the ‘cricket’ book of the year. It will become a very important reference point for anyone who has suffered like they have… It will be an inspiration to thousands’ Daily Mail ‘A Clear Blue Sky is far more gripping and revealing than most of its peers… The passages about love and loss are superbly orchestrated’ Daily Telegraph ‘Profoundly moving’ Sky Sports ‘Moving’ Sunday Times Books of the Year ‘An exceptional book in every way’ Daily Mail Books of the Year

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Book SynopsisAmol Rajan is Comment Editor at the Independent, having previously been a news reporter and Sports News Correspondent for the newspaper. He is also a columnist for the Independent and Evening Standard, and a restaurant critic for the Independent on Sunday. He grew up in Tooting, south London, and from the age of 11 played for Sinjuns Cricket Club (now Sinjuns & Grammarians) in Wandsworth, becoming the youngest captain of a men's team when leading the Sunday First XI in 2002, aged eighteen.www.twitter.com/amolrajanTrade ReviewEnchanting. Twirlymen is packed with anecdotes that fizz like a Murali doosra * Spectator *Wonderful * The Economist *Erudite... Charming and insightful... Knowledgeable, obsessed and astute * New Statesman *Rajan captures the distinctiveness of spin bowlers, a tribe within the wider nation of cricketers * Literary Review *I could not stop picking it up... A history of spin bowling, diligently researched but written with wit and, most tellingly, an obsessive's eye for detail -- Andy Bull * Guardian *

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Book SynopsisPLAYING HARD BALL is a unique sports book, a cultural comparison of two national games - cricket, English in origin and American baseball - written from the viewpoint of a top-class practitioner of both codes. Ed Smith - the young Cambridge University and Kent batsman - has spent the winters since 1998 in Spring Training with the New York Mets baseball team. It has enabled Ed to contrast and compare arguably the two most iconic of sports from the inside. In fact, baseball had a thriving following in Britain until the Great War: Derby County''s former stadium was called the Baseball Ground; Tottenham Hotspur was at first a baseball club. Apart from learning two very different techniques, Ed learned that the sports'' ultimate heroes, the Babe and the Don - Babe Ruth and Don Bradman - might as well have come from different planets, whilst baseball''s pristine Hall of Fame in Cooperstown is a far cry from the ramshackle cricket museum at Lord''s. Ed Smith''s PLAYING HARD BALL draws on thesTrade ReviewOriginal...engrossing...lucid and informative * Christopher Martin-Jenkins, THE TIMES *Quite simply it is brilliant * THE CRICKETER *Ed Smith is superb on analysing the different techniques involved in the two activities. He also writes with great insight... excellent on the social and historical contexts of both baseball and cricket. * SUNDAY TELEGRAPH *An instructive and entertaining book, full of insights. * DAILY TELEGRAPH *

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Book SynopsisWinner of the MCC Book of the Year AwardHis father was a first-class cricketer, his grandfather was a slave.Born in rural Trinidad in 1901, Learie Constantine was the most dynamic all-round cricketer of his age (1928-1939) when he played Test cricket for the West Indies and club cricket for Nelson. Few who saw Constantine in action would ever forget the experience. As well as the cricketing genius that led to Constantine being described as ''the most original cricketer of his time'', Connie illuminates the world that he grew up in, a place where the memories of slavery were still fresh and where a peculiar, almost obsessive, devotion to ''Englishness'' created a society that was often more British than Britain itself. Harry Pearson looks too at the society Constantine came to in England, which he would embrace as much as it embraced him: the narrow working-class world of the industrial North during a time of grave economic depression. Connie<Trade ReviewAt last Constantine has found a biographer capable of telling his magnificent story - Harry Pearson has written a beguiling work that does full justice to this wonderful sportsman and most honourable of men -- Peter Oborne * Daily Mail *an excellently researched and sensitively handled account of Constantine's life and impact beyond the game. He was "a 'Champagne cocktail' cricketer - effervescent but with a kick" and half a century on, his story has lost none of its fizz * ESPN.com *Harry Pearson is an author with an aversion to uninteresting sentences. Connie is a constantly engaging study -- Giles Smith * The Times *Cricket fans will cherish . . . and Harry Pearson 's admirable Learie Constantine biography Connie -- Huw Richards * Guardian *A beautiful book * New European *

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Book SynopsisSir Trevor McDonald is one of Britain''s most celebrated broadcasters and his devotion for cricket is almost as well-known as his legendary professional achievements.In this inspirational memoir, On Cricket, Sir Trevor explores his childhood in the Caribbean and celebrates his life-long love of the sport that followed him no matter where in the world his illustrious journalistic career would take him.Sir Trevor offers a wide-ranging commentary on cricket as a common language between England, the West Indies and beyond - a sense of belonging that knows no borders - and celebrates cricket as an engine of national identity and an essential feature of daily life and community.An exceptional storyteller and commentator, On Cricket is a love letter to the sport and a study of Sir Trevor''s oldest and most consistent passion: watching, debating and playing the gentleman''s game.

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Book SynopsisAlex Blackwell lived and breathed our national sport of cricket for thirty years.Starting as a kid, she spent her childhood and teen years on the field with her identical twin, Kate, who was equally devoted to the bat and ball. While both sisters went on to represent Australia, Alex built a 15-year career in the green and gold, eventually rising to the captaincy, notching up an eye-watering list of sporting achievements and etching her name into cricket''s history.But life off the field brought challenges of its own. From her professional debut, Alex was unafraid to call out hypocrisy and go in to battle against the traditional hierarchies of the game. Speaking out and becoming a passionate advocate for women and LGBTQI people in sport won her many fans and much respect, but it didn''t come without a price.Fair Game is the unmissable account of life and leadership inside Australia''s most loved sporting team, told by one of its most capped playe

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Book SynopsisWinner of the WISDEN BOOK OF THE YEAR award and the TELEGRAPH SPORTS BOOK AWARDS ILLUSTRATED BOOK OF THE YEAR, this book is a celebration of the elegance and timeless beauty of cricket—its greatest and most stylish players, from past heroes to today’s stars, along with its idyllic and hallowed grounds.Cricket has been played for over three hundred years and in some ways remains largely unchanged. It is this timelessness, and the style and spirit in which the game is conducted, which is celebrated in This Is Cricket.The book brings together such idyllic settings as Sir Paul Getty''s Ground in Buckinghamshire, U.K., surrounded by rolling countryside, with the Otago cricket ground in New Zealand set against a backdrop of mountains, as well as the sport''s most hallowed pitches, including Lord''s (opened by Thomas Lord in 1814) and Melbourne Cricket Ground, which hosted the first-ever International Test match in 1877.Readers will venture on a Trade ReviewThis has won the 2021 Wisden Book of the Year award, and is a classic example of the coffee table genre that would grace any living room.' - The Cricketer Magazine, June 2021

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Book SynopsisCourt and Bowled examines a number of stories where cricket or cricketers gave rise to a legal dispute. All of the stories demonstrated something common to both cricket matches and court cases: behind the intrigue, entertainment and theatrics of both there are always real people and real human stories.Table of ContentsAcknowledgements Introduction The Beginnings The Victorians The Demon Drink The Drugs The Deaths The Money The Despots The Revolutionary: Mr Packer Goes to the High Court The Libels Part I: The Players The Libels Part II: The Ball-Tampering Controversies Ball-Tampering and Law 42 The Libels Part III: The Trials of Lalit Modi The Fixers The Nationals The Neighbours Crime on the Field The Laws of the Game: The Spirit and the Letter The Umpire is Always Right Recent Developments Drawing Stumps Index

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Book SynopsisSpiced with humour, the tales of epic encounters at Clifton Hampden are told alongside more modest affairs at Lords, Headingley and Old Trafford.Trade ReviewOf similar books, it's the best - Charles Randall, Daily Telegraph Cricket Correspondent A worthy addition to the world of cricket humour - Sir Tim Rice Book of the month - All Out Cricket Magazine Highly recommended - 334 Not Out I laughed so much I nearly passed my fags round - David Lloyd Very entertaining and enjoyable - Christopher Martin Jenkins A marvellously evocative portrayal of village cricket - Steve Knowles The gentle, droll evocation of the pleasures of cricket - Wisden Cricketer

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Book SynopsisColin Evans, former cricket writer for the Manchester Evening News, looks back at Farokh Engineer's career, recalling many magical moments with Lancashire and India though the 1960s and 1970s.

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Book Synopsis*Updated edition to include the 2017-18, 2019 and 2021-22 Ashes series*Wisden on the Ashes: The authoritative story of cricket''s greatest rivalry is a detailed chronological journey through the history of this famous English-Australian contest. With Test reports, scorecards, Great bowlers of the year and other fascinating material from the archives, together with new editorial pieces, this is a remarkable record of cricket''s most enduring battle.The book begins its journey with England''s first tour of Australia in 1876 and the subsequent three series prior to the 1882 tour that led to a mock obituary being placed in the Sporting Times In affectionate remembrance of English cricket, which died at The Oval on 29th August, 1882. ... The body will be cremated and the ashes taken to Australia. Celebrating the players who made their mark on the game and the controversies that shook the sport, the book covers every series since then through to the moTrade ReviewThis book should prove to be an extremely useful addition to any collector's library * Andrew Roberts Cricket Statistics *Wisden's magisterial history of the Ashes is pretty much an imperative purchase for any relative obsessed with willow and leather * The Daily Telegraph *…a weighty, comprehensive and authoritative tome... * cricketweb.net *Wisden on the Ashes is a tome that should be in every cricket book collection and read by all cricket fans * cricketweb.net *Another magnificent and mighty Wisden tome -- Andrew Roberts * www.andrewrobertscricketstatistics.com *Table of ContentsForeword by Sir Alec Bedser Introduction Early Days: 1876-77 to 1882 The Birth (and Rebirth) of the Ashes: 1882-83 to 1912 The Roaring Twenties: 1920-21 to 1928-29 Bradman, Bodyline and Bradman Again: 1930 to 1948 The Fifties and Sixties: 1950-51 to 1968 The Colour and the Money: 1970-71 to 1980 Botham and Beyond: 1981 to 2002-03 The Greatest Series - and the Worst? 2005 to 2006-07 The Boot on the Other Foot: 2009 to 2010-11 The Roller-Coaster Goes on: 2013 to 2021-22 Records Index

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Book SynopsisThis bumper collection of the funniest anecdotes, jokes and stories from cricket''s best-loved personalities proves that cricket is a funny game - even when rain stops play!In this updated and expanded edition, you can read not only the most popular stories by five of the game''s all-time great characters - Richie Benaud, Dickie Bird, Henry Blofeld, Brian Johnston and Fred Trueman - but also the humour of famous cricketers such as Ian Botham, Andrew Flintoff, Justin Langer, Shane Warne, and modern players including Jimmy Anderson, Joe Root and Ben Stokes.Here are dozens of hilarious anecdotes from around the world about the legendary cricketers Geoffrey Boycott, Donald Bradman, Michael Holding, Sachin Tendulkar and many others - not to mention broadcasting gaffes and giggles, sledging, short-sighted umpires and the phantom sock snipper in the England dressing-room!

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Book SynopsisTHIS BUMPER COLLECTION OF THE FUNNIEST ANECDOTES, JOKES AND STORIES FROM CRICKET''S BEST-LOVED PERSONALITIES PROVES THAT CRICKET IS STILL A FUNNY GAME - EVEN WHEN RAIN STOPS PLAY! With a new introduction by Jonathan Agnew. In this updated and expanded edition of the popular THE WIT OF CRICKET you can read many more hilarious anecdotes about legendary cricketers such as Richie Benaud, Ian Botham, Donald Bradman, Geoff Boycott, Andrew Flintoff, Joe Root and Ben Stokes. There also dozens of humorous gaffes and giggles from the commentary box by Jonathan Agnew, Henry Blofeld, Christopher Martin-Jenkins, Dan Norcross and others - not to mention sledging, short-sighted umpires, streakers, and the phantom sock snipper in the England dressing-room!

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Book Synopsis*THE INSTANT SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER**Nominated for Sports Personality of the Year 2023*Stuart Broad is the ultimate competitor - someone addicted to the pressures of Test cricket, the big occasions and being thrust into the heat of battle. For over seventeen years, he''s left it all on the field. A multiple Ashes winner and World Champion, Broad was integral to some of the greatest England teams of all time. His awards and achievements, however, don''t tell the whole story. He has always been a cricketer of more than mere numbers. Broad''s passionate and spontaneous behaviour has mad him a fan favourite. No other player feeds off the crowd quite like he does. In his autobiography, Broad shares the moments from the game which have made him and those that almost broke him. What''s clear, however, is his unwavering belief in his own ability to become one of the best ever. Candid, entertaining, and refreshingly honest, this book

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Book Synopsis''A treasure of recollections and reactions, talking heroes, controversies and big themes'' i paper''Brearley is at his best in these quirky, delightful essays when he is exploring the human qualities of humbler players . . . Brearley''s admiration for his friends'' decency, craftsmanship and modesty seems to recall a golden age of country cricket'' The Times''Brearley has a knack for paying respect to the past without denigrating the present and for calmly considering the future'' Mail on SundayMike Brearley was arguably one of England''s finest cricket captains; not just for his outstanding record leading his country but also for the way he orchestrated, during the 1981 Ashes series, one of the most extraordinary reversals in sporting history.In this collection of sparkling essays, Brearley reflects on the game he has come to know so well. He ranges from the personal - the influence of his Yorkshire father aTrade ReviewFascinating * Choice *Delightful new book . . . Brearley has a knack for paying respect to the past without denigrating the present and for calmly considering the future * Mail on Sunday *Brearley is at his best in these quirky, delightful essays when he is exploring the human qualities of humbler players . . . Brearley's admiration for his friends' decency, craftsmanship and modesty seems to recall a golden age of county cricket * The Times *Brearley speaks with understated authority on the matter. His words are all the more powerful for that * Sunday Express *A treasure of recollections and reactions, talking heroes, controversies and big themes * i paper *Brearley has a gentle, measured intellect that is warming and intriguing rather than intimidating or irritating . . . Brearley has a rare ability to read the game and its participants with delicacy and precision, like a tailor unpicking a collection of knotted threads * Wisden Cricket Monthly *His relaxed, dextrous, style achieves what most authors aspire to do: make their narrative sound as though they're speaking directly to the reader . . . His cumulative experience, humour and honesty make for a compelling read. Let's hope for a second volume of On Cricket * Dorset Echo *A book full of wisdom and sharp observation * Association of Cricket Statisticians and Historians *Brearley is best when writing about character and thought processes * King Cricket *His cumulative experience, humour and honesty make for a compelling read * Birmingham Post *Mike Brearley is a cultured and intelligent man . . . able elegantly to assess his colleagues and predecessors, as he does with customary grace in his latest volume -- Robert Crampton * The Times *A box of delights containing bitesize pieces on colourful individuals, burning issues and memorable events -- Shomit Dutta * Times Literary Supplement *

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Book SynopsisBen Stokes is not cast in the same mould as the vast majority of English cricketers. Fiery, combative, gladiatorial - he plays the game hard and with great gusto. He is an all-rounder who bats, bowls and fields at full throttle.Some opponents feel threatened by his physical stature and aggressive brand of cricket. Stokes simply doesn''t back down, smashing the next ball for six, bowling his 90 mph chin music, or taking a breathtakingly full-stretch catch at backward point.Whether it''s thrashing the fastest ever Test century at Lord''s or the quickest ever Test double-hundred by an Englishman (against South Africa at Cape Town, in January) or destroying the Australian batting at Trent Bridge, Stokes plays the game he loves with his heart on his sleeve and with 100% effort and commitment. Cricket fans adore him for it.His very first book focuses on the pivotal moments in his life and career so far. These episodes are vibrant, emotional, poignant - revealing th

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Book SynopsisTHE SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLERSHORTLISTED FOR SPORTS AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF THE YEAR AT THE 2020 TELEGRAPH SPORTS BOOK AWARDS.BEN STOKES: WINNER OF THE 2019 BBC SPORTS PERSONALITY OF THE YEAR AWARD''He is the Special One, and I intend to call him that for the rest of his career'' Sir Ian Botham, Daily Telegraph''There are not enough superlatives to describe Ben Stokes'' Nasser Hussain, Daily Mail''The undisputed hero of English cricket'' The TimesEarly evening on Sunday 14th July 2019. Lord''s Cricket Ground in London. Something unprecedented had just happened: England had won the Cricket World Cup for the very first time since the tournament''s inception in 1975. At the epicentre of England''s historic triumph was Ben Stokes, the talismanic all-rounder with an insatiable appetite for The Big Occasion. He contributed a critical 84 runs off 98 balls when England batted, Trade ReviewDaily Mail must reads of 2020This book is a unique memento of one of the greatest summers in sport * NB Magazine *

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Book Synopsis'This could be the first existential book about cricket I've ever read. It's certainly the most ambitious, and by turns the most beautiful...It's both sweeping and meticulous all at once....I can only say, truly, that my connection to the game feels deeper for having read it.' All Out CricketTrade ReviewThe extended piece on the pressures of Ashes series on captains is beautifully painted....I think every aspiring young England cricketer should read this....not as something to be afraid of, but to enlighten and prepare for the challenges that may come his way * Andy Flower *When I see the quality of writing by people like Scyld Berry...I feel daunted. I can never write as well as they can. * Rahul Dravid *Cricket's rich and varied tapestry, revealing character and national characteristics is passed on here by a man who has always been passionately interested in both. -- Mike AthertonThe game of cricket manages to invade the minds of all that are passionate about it on so many levels - it's combination of tradition, innovation, rivalry and friendship makes it truly unique. Scyld manages to encapsulate everything that is great about cricket into a fantastically entertaining book that reminds us all of how lucky we are to have involvement in the best game of all. -- Andrew StraussThis could be the first existential book about cricket I've ever read. It's certainly the most ambitious, and by turns the most beautiful...It's both sweeping and meticulous all at once....I can only say, truly, that my connection to the game feels deeper for having read it. It's a book that dares to concern itself with the 'why' question that lies behind everything. I feel like I understand a little more about why this enduringly magical, absurdly incongruous, infinitely renewable curio continues to take hold of us, and can offer no greater praise than that. -- Phil Walker * All Out Cricket *Perhaps more than any other sport, cricket has inspired outstanding writing. As Scyld Berry reveals in his new book, Cricket: The Game of Life, around 20,000 books or pamphlets have been produced in English on cricket over the years, a record. Now Mr Berry, a former editor of Wisden Cricketers' Almanack and the cricket correspondent of the Sunday Telegraph, has written a worthy addition to this rich lineage. The book may be eclectic, but it is also rewarding' * The Economist *...400 page love letter to the sport, weaving in his own memories with tales from around the world. * Sport *Scyld Berry is a rarity: among cricket correspondents of what were once styled the broadsheets, he is a scribe with almost no playing pedigree...few can challenge the breadth of his knowledge and understanding, or his love, of this most subtle of all sports. Throw in the author's rich cultural awareness and command of the English language and the result is a very good cricket book, one I am happy to label great...Seldom have I read a dust jacket with a more accurate description of its book. Even more rarely have I endorsed a book so wholeheartedly. * Association of Cricket Historians *Scyld Berry's paean to the game from its early days to now is an intensely personal work from one of cricket journalism's most original thinkers, mixing serious historical research with the reveries and theories that have sustained him over a lifetime. A work of love. * ESPNCricinfo *

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Book SynopsisThe compelling story of the Ashes Test match that encapsulated an age-old rivalry between two nations at the dawn of an era

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