It is often claimed that cricket has the richest literature of all sports. possibly an exaggeration – baseball has strong claims too – but it’s undeniably rich. And I’m almost certainly not the only person with an interest in cricket who, as they get older, enjoys reading about the game as much as watching it.
why so rich? because it takes place (in its longest form, anyway) over days, not hours; because its fundamental simplicity (bowl – hit – run – field) masks considerable tactical and even strategic subtlety; for its traditional white-on-green aesthetic appeal; due to its often very revealing social history (gender and ethnicity, as well as class); because it is a game much played in the mind; for its almost infallible ability to reveal character; and for many other reasons.
You are reading: Best books on cricket
What unites the writers here is that, deep down, they all know the two essential things: that cricket really does matter; and that cricket doesn’t really matter at all.
1. Days in the Sun by Neville Cardus Modern writing on cricket begins with Cardus, the self-taught working-class Mancunian who in the 1920s rose to fame reporting cricket matches for the Manchester Guardian. it was he, more than anyone before or possibly since, who exploited the possibilities of imaginatively turning the leading cricketers of the day into three-dimensional, almost fictional characters. he also appreciated how the pace and feel of a day’s game depends as much on the interaction between the players and the crowd as it does on the events in between. cardus’s reputation has faded in recent years (too many factual inaccuracies, note the pedants), but he remains the cornerstone.
2. australia 55 by alan ross cricket tours in the old days were quiet affairs, beginning with the long journey, and this account of ashes’ epic winning tour under the determined if sometimes overly pessimistic captaincy of len hutton stands as a classic of the tour-book genre. In his day job, a renowned literary editor and an accomplished poet, Ross offers here a beguiling double narrative: the dramas and heroics of cricket, yes, but also a shrewd, lyrical snapshot of a country still finding its modern identity. /p>
3. beyond a limit by clr james“what do those who know only cricket know about cricket?” famous question of the Antillean writer and political activist. Regularly placed at or near the top of “best cricket books of all time” lists, this is a compelling mix of memoir, history, controversy and technical analysis, all tied together with a sense of deep commitment. staff. cricket’s natural escapist appeal often keeps literature of it firmly in bounds; But even more than Ross, and writing on the cusp of the postcolonial moment, James is excitingly different.
See Also: Sell rare book, Addison’s Rare Books, LLC 1800 – 1899
4. the art of captaincy by mike brearley, cricket’s philosopher-king, and arguably england’s most successful captain, explains it all…in the process, his lucid treatise not only guides the reader through the many tricks, pitfalls and pitfalls of being a captain, but it reveals how complex, both psychologically and tactically, the game is. Ian Botham once described him as having “a degree in people”, and with characteristic sensitivity Brearley explores how playing cricket can produce at least as many low points as high points, a fact far from all captains, be it on the village green or the proving ground, you know. .
5. On Cricket by John Arlott Arlott was a published poet before, in the post-war years, he became a top cricket writer and legendary radio commentator. Inspired in part by William Hazlitt (one of his heroes), this collection of relatively early essays ranges from an almost rhapsodic evocation of two days of county cricket in Bath to a detailed socio-economic analysis of the conditions of the cricketer. professional. All in all, it’s Arlott at his best human and penetrating form.
6. Beyond the Bat and the Ball by David Foot Based in the West Country, and a fount of gentle wisdom, Foot is one of the Guardian’s most esteemed cricket writers. his forte, exemplified here, is putting himself behind the facade and sympathetically revealing difficult, even tormented, lives with most of his subjects martyred to him, to a greater or lesser extent, in a game that can exact a heavy price. all 11 profiles end with tom richardson: the great pacemaker of surrey and england of the 1890s, a cricketer of matchless heart and courage, he found it difficult (like many professional sportsmen) to manage retirement, dying in france in 1912 in a dark environment and uncertain circumstances.
7. The Cricket War by Gideon Haigh One event stands out above all else in cricket’s last half-century: Kerry Packer’s audacious corporate coup in 1977 that split the cricket world and led directly to the capture of the game on television, along with innovations such as spotlights, white balls and colored clothes. Almost everything since then, including the recent controversial “100 Balls” announcement by the English authorities, has stemmed from that bitterly disputed move. Haigh, a noted cricket historian and widely sympathetic writer, provides the definitive account. this is not cricket literature as therapy, but sometimes the harsh reality is unavoidable.
See Also: 10 Best Software Engineering Books [2022] – InterviewBit
8. One more Directed by Stephen Chalke Surprisingly few cricket books have focused on a single match, but this gem is one of them. Largely through Wells’ memories of the “bomber”, trumpeter and narrator, Chalke lovingly recreates the three-day meeting at Cheltenham in 1957 between Gloucestershire and Yorkshire. the contest itself reads convincingly enough, but what remains in the reader’s mind is the microcosm of a now-defunct ecology: players and spectators alike imbued with strong local affinities; respectful appreciation of craft qualities; and the whole occasion is a world away from the rough and tumble mercenary biff-bang of t20, or worse.
9. A Corner of a Foreign Field by Ramachandra Guha India was long one of the Cinderellas of world cricket: Don Bradman never went there, nor did many of the leading English players. That has now completely changed, as the IPL formula (exuberant crowds, huge TV audiences, mega-dollars, brash and loud showmanship, sixes to the finish) continues to exert a captivating influence. In his innovative and elegantly written history of Indian cricket, Guha provides us with a long-term narrative, dating back to the days of the British Empire; And in doing so, as befits the best Gandhi biographer, he illuminates the making of modern India itself.
10. Cricket: The Game of Life by Scyld Berry, the most recent of the 10 books, would have been recognized as a modern classic had it been edited more rigorously. but it’s still a wonderfully enjoyable and insightful potpourri as it moves confidently through the eras and geographies of cricket. writers who genuinely and fearlessly think for themselves are rarer than one might think, but berry is one of them, never more so than in his chapter on “numbers”, debunking cricket’s obsession with statistics, that obsession that over the years has drawn so many to the game. people can let you down, but batting averages never do.
-
arlott, swanton and the soul of english cricket by stephen fay and david kynaston is published by bloomsbury, priced at £20. It’s available from Guardian Bookshop for £17 including free UK postage.
See Also: Maya Angelou Books – The Best Maya Angelou Books and Poems