'This splendid anthology will be enjoyed by both players and watchers, but perhaps appeal even more to the largest class of all, the dreamers and fantasists, those sadly inferior players who become in imagination Bothams and Gowers hooking Curtley Ambrose in the stands . The dreamers will find plenty to feed on here.' - Evening Standard (UK) This richly entertaining anthology conveys the sweep of cricket's evolution from W. G. Grace to Shane Warne, from the sport's origins in the Weald to the contemporary professional (and increasingly commercial) game. There are sections on 'A Boy's Game', 'England v Australia' and 'Champions and Characters', and contributions from such luminaries as C. L. R. James and Mike Brearley, Neville Cardus and E. W. Swanton, Stephen Fry and Edmund Blunden. Cricket has inspired more writing, in terms of both volume and quality, than any other sport. A romantic game of skill, patience and heroic deeds, cricket is also a tough duel between batsman and bowler, unique because the team battle is dependent on the sum of individual struggles.