Art of Batting

Colourful cricket history meets expert analysis in this richly researched exploration of the art of batting. Most batters are just trying to survive, yet the top players are creating art. It is physically impossible to face a delivery at 80 miles per hour and track it with your eyes. And yet the greatest batters do more than just watch the ball, they predict where it is going. They can see into the future. This book is about the batters who see what mortals don’t. Javed Miandad would purposefully make errors to manipulate the field. Sachin Tendulkar dug up a pitch to take on Warne. Joe Root’s great play against spin is a confluence of three random events. Shivnarine Chanderpaul was peppered by tennis balls on the beach until he created his bastardised technique. Jack Hobbs was the first recipient of new cricket pitches made by liquid manure. Smith, Pietersen and Richards carried on the work of a man 100 years before their time.