This is a gentle ramble through Northamptonshire cricket, through the fields of maroon and gold. There are plenty of signposts along the way, pointing at the big players and stopping off at some of the big matches that, between 1974 and 2013, have been part of Northamptonshire's cricketing map. From the author's first introduction to life at Wantage Road, right through to the Twenty20 coronation at Edgbaston - only the fourth major trophy in Northamptonshire's history. The book is intended to be a ramble, pottering here and there but by no means covering all the ground. It reflects upon how some of world cricket's biggest names contributed to the county game with Northamptonshire and touches on what life was like covering the fortunes of the county cricket club as a reporter before professionalism took a stranglehold. In particular, it tells the story of one local boy who did very good - David Capel, who spent 33 years at Wantage Road as a boy and a man, a player and a coach, and in-between time fitting in an England career as an all-rounder. Former chief executive Steve Coverdale and several former players - Capel himself, David Steele, Geoff Cook, Dennis Lillee, Rob Bailey, Nigel Felton, Winston Davis, Andrew Hall and David Ripley - provide an overview of a diverse and colourful cricket club. While short of trophies, Northamptonshire's cricketers have never fallen short in their determination to attack and entertain over the years. Welcome to Wantage Road. Keep on attacking

Kingsmead, Durban, December 2015. It's lunchtime on the first day of the Test match between the Proteas and England. AB de Villiers is being interviewed on SuperSport and he holds aloft a book. The camera focuses in: it's At the Crease!

This handsome hardback edition commemorates the extraordinary journey travelled by the Proteas since readmission to world cricket in 1991. From the first tour of India, At the Crease is filled with a selection of the finest photographs from Gallo Images that capture the triumphs and tragedies on the cricket field. Which cricket lover will ever forget Mark Boucher punching the sky after scoring the winning runs in the "438" game against Australia? What about when Makhaya Ntini took five wickets at Lords and knelt down to kiss the hallowed turf?

At the Crease has it all, and will include detailed captions, a brief history, and an introduction from a leading cricket player.

'Grand Slam' is a metaphor is derived from tennis. Cricket, like tennis, depends on surfaces. Winning 6-0 at times is cool, but the best can do 6-2, 6-4 again and again, across continents. Grand Slam Tendulkar is the cricketing equivalent of that Grand Slam Tendulkar, is essentially the last chapter of "Lessons at Love All Play- Legend Tendulkar Matters" (Amazon ASIN B00H0LABVK, Nov 30 2013).* Re-live a golden era of Indian cricket 2007-11, with match summaries of Indian Cricket Legend Bharat Ratna Sachin Tendulkar and Team India in Tests & ODIs. Tendulkar brought up his third Test Grand Slam, and raised his ODI game, yet again, to help India get to the top in both formats. He had a mind-boggling range of match winning performances, as well as, support contributions-the profile of a tournament winner. Win matches on your day and help your teammates win it on their day #ItsATeamGame Team India grabbed their #loveAllPlayMoment-the point when a team is ready to compete globally-to get ahead of every other nation. Sehwag, Gambhir, Dravid, Tendulkar, Laxman, Ganguly, Yuvraj, Dhoni, Kumble, Harbhajan, Zaheer Khan, with other young stars- Kohli, Ishant Sharma, Ashwin, Pujara, Rohit Sharma and others - were one heck of an 'Incredible India' combination. Topics covered: The Test Grand Slam- performing against/in each country Tendulkar's Test Cycles- 3.5 Grand Slams Match summary of every Test series of India 07-11, crediting other legends and young stars. Tendulkar's amazing '07-11, the numbers which matter Tendulkar achieved some stunning sequences in consistency, which any other legend, from any era would envy. India ahead of every Test country - Ranked #1 irrespective of ICC ratings ODI World Cups- Tendulkar the opener World Cup Bowling review (since '92) - England and West Indies on top India in WC '11- getting the phases and chases right "*This abridged version is for readers, who do not wish to get into sports essays or cricket theory, but want to get directly into the matches. The best lessons are learnt in real games, after all A synopsis of the earlier sections of the original, is provided with an Appendix for reference. The same hashtag nomenclature is followed. However, rivalries of Tendulkar with other legends- Lara, Ponting, Kallis, the great bolwers of 1990-2000s, and comparative notes related to past legends are in the original only."

The second half of the once-in-a-lifetime Double Ashes Series unfolds day by day via the quirky and insightful pen of The 17th Man, the last player picked in the Australian cricket squad. England started bristling with confidence, but it soon evaporated in the heat of the WACA sun, as Australia secured The Ashes and then steam-rolled England 5-0. All the triumph and controversy is here - departures and debuts, drop-bears and drop-ins, runs and runaways, petulance, performers and pretenders wedged between the odd sledge, broken bats, and a bucket of celebration, capped by hilarious commentary from the Tests in Tweets. Relive it all in The 17th Man's 'Summer of Shove', the sister volume to 'Summer of the 17th Man, England 2013'.

Reader, you are in for a treat. Or possibly a shock. Richard 'Siggy' Young has just written an astonishing cricket book about football. Or perhaps it's a stunning football book about cricket. There was much more to the birth and subsequent explosive rise of football in Scotland than mere football. There was cricket. Scottish cricket, Big Scottish cricket. This is serious revisionist history. Cherished myths are debunked. ...a must-read for all with even a passing interest in the origins of Scottish 'fitba' and the social dynamics of nineteenth century industrial Scotland. One thing's for sure. Make no mistake. It's an utter gem.

A funnily serious book for intelligent cricket lovers. In 27 chapters Watching Cricket on the Radio challenges orthodoxy and stimulates sensible thinking about "the great game". Satire and science, and idle thoughts in intervals, sparks cricket devotee Dr. Dan's speculations: Red or white ball, why follow cricket at all? Anyway, what is 'Good Cricket'? Could cricket coverage be improved? Why prefer radio to television commentary? Current and future technologies, for better or worse? Heuristics galore, how better to judge a match? Better than a hat trick, what do you call it? What of cricketing chimpanzees or a cloned cricketer? Join the English gentleman and X-Professor of Systems Science and Engineering's enjoyment of all cricket. Relive with him a hilarious commentary at Lord's and other matches he watched on the radio. "Dr. Dan's Diaries - worth a million there." - Tweet read out on BBC local radio, Middlesex v. Durham at Lord's, 10th. September, 2014, and not from the author.

If you love cricket, you'll love the 17th Man's Ashes Diary Laugh your way through the 2013 Ashes Tour with nearly 100 diary entries The 17th Man returns, bringing his unique style to the 2013 Ashes series. As the last man picked in the Australian touring squad, The 17th Man writes a daily diary covering the on-field action and the behind the scenes intrigue of his parallel cricketing universe. Now, his diary is available here, with added features, illustrations and The 17th Man's famous "Best of the Test in Tweets." All the controversy of the 2013 Ashes in one book - WalkaboutGate - One Coach down, 5 tests to go - DRS and other catastrophes - Who turned out the lights? - Rain? What rain? With illustrations by cartoonist Jock Macneish What readers say about the 17th Man "Funny, considered, intelligent humour which struck a chord for me as a cricket fan." "Warwick Todd with bite " "It so believable that I wish it were all true." "Easy and fun reading." "The Catch 22 of cricket fiction"

"An intricate and colourful story of deception beautifully rendered. As a portrait of the idiosyncrasies of English cricket, Cometh the Yuan is a Chinese cut above the rest." - The Guardian They said it could never happen. They said such a national treasure would never be allowed to fall into China's insatiable grasping clutches. And anyway, they said, what could China possibly want with the spiritual home of the game of cricket? Retribution, said some. Lord's Cricket Ground owes its eighteenth century origins to fortunes made from getting the Chinese hooked on opium and now it's payback time. Nonsense, said China. We're just extending a helping hand to a western cultural icon in a financial fix. Honest. Smelling a sizeable rat in China's assurances, the fraternity of world cricket starts digging. What it unearths is enough to shake western civilisation to its roots. With England's hosting of the Cricket World Cup just a year away, China's motives for taking an interest in Lord's are not only not honourable, it discovers, they're simply not cricket."

This book takes an in depth look at India's iconic cricket legend Sachin Tendulkar including his success and where he fell short. Author of the book who is of Sachin's age, describes how the child prodigy Sachin took over the entire nation by storm in his early days. How he quickly earned the status of batting genius and the God, which puts Sachin in the ultimate batting league of only Viv Richards and Brian Lara. Book goes a step beyond, to praise Sachin outside his batting records and greatness. Author measures Sachin's performances in context, by judging him only against the best attacks, the toughest batting conditions and the high pressure big occasions in the game. Just the way the book mentions Sachin's heroics over the 23 year career, book also sheds light on how he has come up short against the world champion Australian side, the South Africans and at the high pressure big occasion innings. Author also explores the Indian cricket culture. of putting personal milestones ahead of the team's performances, and how the retirements of the players are delayed, hurting the performance of the team and the careers of the new youngsters. In the end, Author talks about the successful MS Dhoni era and how Sachin has positively contributed to this era.

Many of us have dreamed about upping sticks, leaving the humdrum of urban living for a new life of blue skies, warm sunshine and sparkling seas. For Anthony and Ivana Stancomb, moving from Fulham to Vis was an easy decision. But fitting in with the locals was one of the hardest things they have ever had to do. Under a Croatian Sun takes the reader on a journey from Grey Britain to a ramshackle village in Croatia - a village proudly defined by its tragic history, its unique cafe culture, its fishing industry and its potent alcohol. Faced with a language barrier and not the friendliest of locals, little by little our undaunted couple become islanders in their own right, and melt a few hearts in the process. With the Adriatic Sea as a backdrop, we trace their transformation from foreigners to friends, taking in their adventures on the water, fierce grandmothers, star-cross'd lovers and the establishment of the island's first ever cricket team. This heartwarming accounts of following your heart and not your head, shows how, with a bit of courage and an open mind, home is wherever you make it.

This book is available as open access through the Bloomsbury Open Access programme and is available on www.bloomsburycollections.com. Globalizing Cricket examines the global role of the sport - how it developed and spread around the world. The book explores the origins of cricket in the eighteenth century, its establishment as England's national game in the nineteenth, the successful (Caribbean) and unsuccessful (American) diffusion of cricket as part of the development of the British Empire and its role in structuring contemporary identities amongst and between the English, the British and postcolonial communities. Whilst empirically focused on the sport itself, the book addresses broader issues such as social development, imperialism, race, diaspora and national identities. Tracing the beginnings of cricket as a 'folk game' through to the present, it draws together these different strands to examine the meaning and social significance of the modern game. This book is a must-read for anyone interested in the role of sport in both colonial and post-colonial periods; the history and peculiarities of English national identity; or simply intrigued by the game and its history.

The Alternative Cricket Almanack 2011 is a collection of witty and incisive articles from a group of unheralded, passionate writers. This book is a fantastic read for cricket fans, and proceeds go to an equally brilliant cause for cricket fans. Cricket coverage is terrible these days, with overpaid, under-qualified commentators spoon-feeding us their sterilized non-opinions. We have decided to take a stand. Rather than boring you to death with turgid prose, we have written this book in order to entertain you. There are hilarious anecdotes to go with brutally honest analysis of the current game. Proceeds will go towards a scholarship for promising cricketers in Afghanistan, via the Afghan Youth Cricket Support Organisation. Cricket is as potent a sport as any in terms of bringing people together, and Afghanistan is in need of an ambassador who can be a spearhead in this context. There is ample talent out there, just waiting to be discovered and nurtured - with your help, we can achieve something incredible. If we are able to discover a diamond in the rough, a Murali, a Tendulkar, maybe even the next Dilhara Fernando...it will make a huge difference - any success for Afghan cricket has the potential to inspire Afghanistan as a nation. We certainly pull no punches when it comes to criticising everyone from commentators, to overpaid board members to umpires, although we do reserve praise for our 'Alternative Team of the Year' and 'Players to Watch for in 2011'. On VVS Laxman: "Laxman remains the most attractive man in the Indian side, despite having the appearance of a pharmacist in 1970's Mumbai." From 'Diary of a Cricket Widow' "I also don't see why he is so obsessed with Shahid Afridi. We both have similarly luscious hair, although I do concede that I never get promotions at work for sucking at life and bending the laws. My partner is not even Pakistani himself, yet he watches YouTube videos of Afridi's Head & Shoulders adverts. Confusingly, sometimes I find him posing in front of the bathroom mirror, stroking his ever-growing bald patch and pouting: "Because I'm worth it, yaar." I daren't ask. " Our book also includes pieces such as... - Don Bradman coming back from the dead as a zombie - A Day in the life of the Pakistan captain - Why Girls Can't Throw - An Homage to Tendulkar - Why Fast Bowlers Don't Eat Ice Cream - An Alternative Perspective on Women's Cricket This is an altogether unique take on cricket, written by fans with a passion for the game. You will laugh out loud at our visceral, often black humour, and you will raise eyebrows at our unapologetically honest take on the cricket world.

For all the glamour and new-found wealth that has come to cricket thanks to the IPL, the sport has rarely faced such an uncertain future. The gold standard of cricket - Test matches - is being sidelined in some countries by the shorter forms of the game. While the sport is being transformed, administrators are struggling to keep pace with it all. Yet, despite all of this, the sport's essential elements remain in place: great games are played, new stars rise up and old stars step back and retire. In this collection of writing, Gideon Haigh takes the pulse of the game today, and in particular looks at the decline of the sport in Australia, where the once all-conquering men in the 'baggy green' suddenly found themselves struggling to impose themselves on their opponents.

When Mark Boucher played his first game of cricket for South Africa, a senior player took him aside and bluntly told him he was the worst wicketkeeper ever to play in the national side. Over a decade later, when Bouch finally retired with a plethora of records under his belt and to huge acclaim from the public, he took grim satisfaction in relating this piece of history.

Through My Eyes is the story of a man with remarkable sporting prowess. Born into a sports-mad family in East London, he excelled in squash, tennis and rugby before choosing cricket as his preferred sport. His extraordinary achievements on the field are well known - he was voted SA player of the year in 1998, 2000 and 2006. What is not so well known, and makes up much of this book, are the behind-the-scenes stories and anecdotes. Stories of staring down the barrel of defeat and of celebrating victory; of developing strong bonds with teammates Graeme Smith, Jacques Kallis and others that go way beyond mere friendship. What emerges is the image of a man who always fought for the underdog, whose never-say-die attitude inspires those around him.

Bouch's career was brought to a dramatic end on a cricket pitch in England when the bail of a stump punctured his left eye. But, in his own words, "I lost sight but gained vision".

True to his character of gritty determination, Bouch has rededicated his life to a new cause, that of the environment and particularly the critically endangered rhino.

There have been hundreds of books written on the subject of cricket coaching over the past two centuries. This book does not attempt to add to that list. Instead it attempts to provide young cricketers with nontechnical tips and techniques to help them develop into successful young cricketers. The Young Cricketer's Companion is for all young cricketers who wish to raise their level of performance. The book provides performance tips and valuable insights into the mental side of the game - the psychology of cricket - at a level suited to those aged between 10 and 18 years. The author covers the mental aspects of batting, bowling, fielding and wicket-keeping, as well as fitness, pre-season preparation, practice and captaincy. '.... for many years we have seen a plethora of books based on improving cricketing techniques. Seldom do we come across an approach to cricket which encompasses so many facets of the game, such as physical, mental and nutritional preparation. A good read for any players serious about their cricket who wish to improve their performance....' Peter Watt, Head of Physical Education, Hutt International Boys' School. 'The Young Cricketer's Companion is a wonderful book for any young cricketer who loves cricket and wishes to take his game to the next level. The book offers sound advice and a common sense, simple approach to a game that can sometimes be overcomplicated by those charged with coaching the game. What sets it apart from many of the other books about youth cricket is the underlying "mental approach" to the game that the author subtly refers to consistently throughout the book. Cricket at the higher level is all about the "top six inches" and the sooner our cricketers are exposed to this at the lower levels the better I believe they will become.' Mark Borthwick, Coaching Director, Cricket Wellington.

The mental side of cricket is what separates the best players from the rest. Technical, tactical, and physical preparation are important for top class performances but it is often what happens inside a player's mind that is the difference between success and failure. The very best players and teams are confident, motivated, concentrate effectively, cope with pressure, and control their emotions. The Psychology of Cricket is the first book to provide expert and up-to-date advice into one of the most psychological sports around.

The book is appropriate for anyone involved in playing or coaching cricket, and for all levels. The Psychology of Cricket teaches individuals to develop mental toughness by using mental skills which can be used in both practice and match situations, and provides expert advice on understanding the important ingredients of successful teams and leaders.

- Train and develop your mind to perform more effectively and consistently.

- Learn how to deal more consistently and effectively with your emotions and pressure.

- Boost your confidence through recalling success, reflection, and smart thinking.

- Develop concentration routines to maximize your mental energy.

- Learn how the best players develop mental toughness