Description
Book SynopsisAdolf Hitler despised cricket, considering it un-German and decadent. And Berlin in 1937 was not a time to be going against the Fuhrer's wishes. But hot on the heels of the 1936 Olympics, an enterprising cricket fanatic of enormous bravery, Felix Menzel, somehow persuaded his Nazi leaders to invite an English team to play his motley band of part-timers.
That team was the Gentlemen of Worcestershire, an ill-matched group of mavericks, minor nobility, ex-county cricketers, rich businessmen and callow schoolboys led by former Worcestershire CC skipper Major Maurice Jewell. Ordered not to lose' by the MCC, Jewell and his men entered the ''Garden of Beasts'' to play two unofficial Test matches against Germany.
Against a backdrop of repression, brutality and sporadic gunfire, the Gents battled searing August heat, matting pitches, the skill and cunning of Menzel, and opponents who didn''t always adhere to the laws and spirit of the game. The tour culminated in a match at
Trade Review
Eccentric and improbably entertaining * The Economist *
Amusing, touching and chilling -- Christopher Hirst * The Independent *
Cricket and Nazis! Can there be a more enticing combination of subjects to read about? A wonderful story... A story begging to be told -- Marcus Berkmann * Daily Mail *
