Metro Plus
Bangalore
Chennai
Coimbatore
Delhi
Hyderabad
Kochi
On the ball
"We expect the 2007 World Cup to be the curtain call for icons of the modern game. We say goodbye to Sachin Tendulkar, Brian Lara, Chris Cairns, Sanath Jayasuriya, Inzamam-ul-Haq and Adam Gilchrist, all most likely to retire before the 2011 World Cup," Peter Murray is clear in his approach as he pens the first of the many likely publications in the run up to the grand event in the West Indies.
Murray, a seasoned writer based in Australia, has produced some attractive coffee-table tributes to the game and this one is no different, only it has a far more attractive format and look.
Shaped like a cricket ball, the "World Cup Cricket", dwells on the history of the tournament apart from offering player profiles and complete statistics by Delhi-based Rajesh Kumar.
The book predictably begins with the history of the World Cup, tracing some exciting moments from the time Clive Lloyd held the trophy aloft from the balcony at Lord's in 1975 to Australia's epic triumph at The Wanderers in 2003. But two glaring errors stand out sorely in this section with the publishers getting the years for the tournament in Australia and India-Pakistan-Sri Lanka wrong.
Triggering debate
The book now sets up a debate as the authors profile some of the performers from the past and some of the future, expecting them to light up the tournament when it is held for the time in the Caribbean. Brian Lara occupies the first slot in the list followed by team-mate Chris Gayle, Australian Andrew Symonds, England skipper Andrew Flintoff, Graeme Smith, M.S. Dhoni, Salman Butt, Lou Vincent, Kumara Sangakkara, Ricky Ponting, Ifran Pathan, Alok Kapali, Kevin Pietersen, Sachin Tendulkar, Brendon McCullum, Dwayne Bravo, Rahul Dravid, Virender Sehwag, Jacques Kallis, Yuvraj Singh, Mike Hussey, S. Sreesanth, Shahid Afridi.
The authors have the right to pick the players of their choice but some names do not impress. Kapali, the Bangladeshi batsman, does not quite fit into this selection where Vincent and Butt too appear to be the odd men out, not to speak of McCullum. Certainly, they do not fall in the category of players who would attract a huge following on a stage where experience would count as much as natural young talent.
The book concludes on a sound note with Rajesh Kumar providing some interesting statistics along with the tournament schedule. In all, it is a decent effort but for a few errors and the choice of players in the profile section.
Printer friendly
page
Send this article to Friends by
E-Mail
Metro Plus
Bangalore
Chennai
Coimbatore
Delhi
Hyderabad
Kochi
|
