Showing titles in Cricket

Fatty Batter is the story of one man's lifelong obsession with cricket. From his earliest awkward days as a fat schoolboy, to his years running a team of dysfunctional inadequates, cricket has offered Michael Simkins a shelter from life's irksome realities and a place in which to quietly dream. That place is a peculiarly English arcadia of occasional wondrous beauty, forests of comforting statistics and the endless life-affirming rituals of defeat, humiliation and disappointment - the perfect net practise for life.

This book is about the batters who see what mortals don’t. Javed Miandad purposefully makes errors to manipulate the field, Sachin Tendulkar dug up a pitch to take on Warne, Shivnarine Chanderpaul practised non-stop on a beach with tennis balls until he mastered technique and Joe Root’s great play against spin is known to be a confluence of three random events. Others, such as Smith, Pietersen and Richards, carried on the work of a man 100 years before their time, and Ranji changed cricket with a bucket.

Felix takes us through his life growing up in South West London and describes how his story is forever punctuated and given meaning by cricket. Through his own exploits as a slow left arm spinner of 'lovely loopy stuff', to the tragic illness of his mother, life with The Maccabees and his cricket redemption, Felix touches on both the comedic and the tragic in equal measure. Throughout, there's the ever-present roller coaster of following the England cricket team. 

WINNER OF THE MCC / CRICKET SOCIETY BOOK OF THE YEAR AWARD WINNER OF THE HEARTACHES' CRICKET BOOK OF THE YEAR AWARD LONGLISTED FOR THE WILLIAM HILL SPORTS BOOK THE YEAR AWARD An England cricket tour is a unique phenomenon, with its own pressures, challenges and remarkable highlights. It presents...

ENTERTAINMENT SPORTS BOOK OF THE YEAR 2024 What Goes on Tour, Stays on Tour…Until Now! As a cricketer, broadcaster and celebrity jungle-dweller, Phil Tufnell has travelled the world far and wide. From the great cricket tours of Australia and South Africa to his equally memorable jaunts to...

Harold Larwood is an England cricketing legend. During the MCC’s notorious 1932–3 Ashes tour of Australia, his ‘Bodyline’ bowling left Australia’s batsmen bruised and battered, halved the batting average of the great Don Bradman – and gave England a 4–1 series victory. But the diplomatic row that followed brought Anglo-Australian relations to the brink of collapse. Larwood was used as a scapegoat by the MCC, which demanded he apologise for bowling Bodyline.

Ian Botham, voted the cricketer of the 20th century by the fans, was a genuine all-rounder who, when on form, was simply unstoppable. In his miraculous early career, he broke all the records: the fastest ever all-rounder to achieve the magical test doubles of 1,000 runs and 100 wickets, 2,000...

Jonathan “Aggers” Agnew, England’s voice of cricket, showcases some of the very best writings on the noble game, from the 1930s to the present day. In this wide-ranging and beautifully-produced anthology, Test Match Special’s Jonathan ‘Aggers’ Agnew, chooses a wide variety of...

In 1902, playing for England against Australia at The Oval, Gilbert Jessop played arguably the greatest innings in the history of cricket, turning what looked like certain defeat into what became an incredible victory, and doing so at such speed that he set a record for the fastest Test century for England that still stands more than 1,000 Test matches later.

The Ashes series of 1954–55 marked a watershed moment in the history of English cricket. Under the leadership of Len Hutton, the national team’s first professional captain, one of the greatest group of players ever to represent England won an Ashes series in Australia for the first time in more than 20 years. It is a feat that has been repeated only four times in more than 70 years since. But Hutton’s men had to overcome the additional obstacle of losing heavily in the first Test – only one England team has managed to win an overseas Ashes series after such a monumental setback.

The Following On Podcast is the very best of talkSPORT's cricket output with original programming, features, big name guests and immediate reaction whenever the England cricket team plays. Every Tuesday, 'The Cricket Collective' brings you a world view of the game with Neil Manthorp and Ashes star Steve Harmison. Every single time England play, talkSPORT's Cricket Editor Jon Norman presents the show from the ground shortly after play has finished with a rotating cast of guests. And whenever talkSPORT go on tour with the England cricket team a daily show is brought straight to your ...

Legendary cricket broadcaster Henry Blofeld takes the listener on a journey from A-Z through the world of cricket. In his trademark charming style, Blowers goes through the alphabet, explaining some of the puzzling cricket terminology and regaling his favourite anecdotes from his 50 years in the sport, covering the most important moments in the sport's history as well as the most entertaining and amusing. 

Arlott and Swanton typified the contrasting aspects of post-war Britain. Because of their strong personalities and distinctive voices – Swanton's crisp and upper-class, Arlott's with its Hampshire burr – each had a loyal following. As England moved from a class-based to a more egalitarian society, nothing stayed the same – including professional cricket. Wise, lively and filled with rich social and sporting history, Arlott, Swanton and the Soul of English Cricket shows how, as the game entered a new era, these two very different men battled to save the soul of the game.

This 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 special audio edition, you can hear not only the most popular stories told by five of the game's all-time great...

Mike Brearley is one of the most successful cricket captains of all time, and in 1981 he captained the England team to the momentous Ashes series victory against Australia. In The Art of Captaincy, his treatise on leadership and motivation, he draws directly on his experience of man-managing a team, which included a pugnacious Ian Botham and Geoffrey Boycott, to explain what it takes to be a leader on and off the field.

Why does England rely on private schools for their batters—but not their bowlers? How did demographics shape India’s rise? Why have women often been the game’s great innovators? Why does South Africa struggle to produce Black Test batters? And how does the weather impact who wins? Crickonomics explores all of this and much more.

The fascinating life story of professional cricketer Kevin Pietersen, MBE, from his childhood in South Africa to his recent experiences as one of the leading lights in the world of international cricket.

Completely revised and updated featuring two brand new chapters, in preparation for the 2019 Ashes series From the William Hill Award-Winning Author of A Lot of Hard Yakka comes Cricket's Greatest Rivalry: A History of the Ashes in 12 Matches by Simon Hughes. A fast-paced, distinctive history of...

The Shorter Wisden is a compelling distillation of what's best in its bigger brother – and the 2020 edition of Wisden is crammed, as ever, with the best writing in the game. Wisden's digital version includes the influential Notes by the Editor, and all the front-of-book articles.

Phil Tufnell played in five Ashes series and has commentated on another ten. Now he's sat down and personally chosen his 50 Ashes 'legends' from the modern era and from both sides of the divide. Shortlisted for Sports Entertainment Book of the Year at the 2026 Sports Book Awards Tuffers' Ashes...