No one is better placed than Bob Simpson to comment on how cricket has changed over the last half a century. The prodigy who played first-class cricket for NSW as a sixteen year old is the only post-war Australian cricketer whose Test- match career has spanned more than twenty years. He captained his country on 39 occasions, then as an innovative coach he masterminded the Australian cricket resurgence of the Border/Taylor years. At other times he has been a journalist, commentator, promoter, coaching consultant and match referee. Simpson has always been a close observer of the game and the men who make it. In Simmo: Cricket Then and Now, Bob fondly recalls many wonderful characters such as Keith Miller, Richie Benaud, Bill Lawry, Wes Hall, Merv Hughes, Allan Border and Steve Waugh - and offers strong opinions on some of the major issues confronting cricket, including illegal-action bowlers, the state of one-day cricket, umpiring standards and the future of today's Australian team. He also analyses why the quality of pace bowling and catching has declined in the past decade, while paying hearty tributes to 21st-century champions such as Shane Warne, Ricky Ponting, and Andrew Flintoff. Simmo: Cricket Than and Now is a timely and fascinating study of cricket over the past 50 years, and a revealing portrait of one of the game's finest players and most enduring personalities.

This book focuses on the development of cricket in Australia, with a focus on the commercial and professional aspects of the game. It takes a historical approach and analyses the reasons behind the ebbs and flows of commercialisation in the game. It also applies economic analysis to help provide it with some original insights into the way in which the game is structured and has developed in Australia. The book would be of interest to a range of people both in Australia and abroad, who are interested in the manner in which sport in the modern world has become a commercialised pursuit.

Set during Kerry Packer's World Series Cricket revolution, this book tells the story of the Australian Test cricketers plucked from the backwaters of the domestic game to take on full-strength international sides. Some became cricketing greats. Others were lost in the footnotes of history. But all have important stories to share. From 1977/78 to the reconciliation, two Australian sides competed in parallel universes: World Series Cricket's glamorous rock star realm and the attritional reality of Test cricket fought by predominantly younger, poorly paid men honouring the baggy green. Friendships were broken, and new bonds formed, as the public first sided with the traditional game before backing World Series Cricket in greater numbers. Kerry Packer eventually won the cricketing war. However, Test cricket survived because of those who carried the Australian banner for the game. These players became known as the 'Establishment Boys' and until now they have barely been acknowledged.

Supporters went to watch England play cricket overseas well before anyone had heard of cricket's Barmy Army, but what was it like? Pete Christopher's book tells the story of being on supporter tours visiting Australia, New Zealand, Sri Lanka, the West Indies, and South Africa, watching England win, draw, but mainly losing cricket matches. The book charts the rise of England's Barmy Army group of fans, from backpacker's funding their day's cricket by selling t-shirts, to the oft witnessed and TV highlighted organised assemblages now seen at Test matches. The author also describes the cricket matches he witnessed, countries and places he visits, and the sights he was lucky enough to see - a cricket travelogue from moments in time.

WISDEN BOOK OF THE YEAR 2020 Winner of The Telegraph Sports Book Awards 2020 Heartaches Cricket Book of the Year 'Fascinating . . . essential reading' – Scyld Berry 'A fascinating book, essential for anyone who wishes to understand cricket's new age' – Alex Massie, Wisden Cricketers' Almanack 'An invaluable guide' – Mike Atherton, The Times 'excellent . . . both breezily engaging, and full of the format's latest, best and nerdiest thinking' – Gideon Haigh, The Australian 'The century's most original cricket book . . . An absorbing ride . . . some of their revelations come with the startling force of unexpected thunder on a still night' – Suresh Menon, editor Wisden India Almanack Cricket 2.0 is the multi award-winning story of how an old, traditional game was revolutionised by a new format: Twenty20 cricket. The winner of the Wisden Almanack Book of the Year award, the Telegraph Sports Book Awards' Cricket Book of the Year and selected as one of The Cricketer's greatest cricket books of all time, Cricket 2.0 is an essential read both for Test and T20 cricket lovers alike, and all those interested in modern sport. Using exclusive interviews with over 80 leading players and coaches – including Jos Buttler, Ricky Ponting, Kieron Pollard, Eoin Morgan, Brendon McCullum and Rashid Khan – Tim Wigmore and Freddie Wilde chronicle this revolution with insight, forensic analysis and story-telling verve. In the process, they reveal how cricket has been transformed, both on and off the field. Told with vivid clarity and insight, this is the extraordinary and previously misunderstood story of Twenty20, how it is reshaping the sport – and what the future of cricket will look like. Readers will never watch a T20 game in quite the same way again. "For people that love cricket it's really important to read it," said Miles Jupp. "I found it extraordinary."