Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #20617 in Books
• Published on: 2003-06-26
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 256 pages

Customer Reviews

Setting the Record Straight
I have always been interested in cricket and especially the furore over what Jardine is most famous for, 'Bodyline'. The author, Christopher Douglas, has written an excellent book, that balances the career of one of Englands most famous amateur cricketers, who was also captain of England. It looks at the social and cricket life of Jardine and brings the reader round to thinking, 'Is this man really as bad as everyone thought he was?'

When I finshed the book I felt that anyone who would have a bad opinion of Jardine and what he stood for, would have came round to realising that this man was a fantastically proud, honourable and steadfast individual who was prepared to do anything to get the job done. His approach to, and development of 'Bodyline' was a statement of intent. He said to his Austrailian opponents, 'You have the best batsman in the world (Bradman) and we have the best bowlers in world (Larwood and Voce), you deal with them.' If they were the best then they should play their way out of trouble.

Away from cricket it portrays Jardine as a strong willed, dry-witted, decent and family orientated man. Once he left the public eye, he remained a cricket correspondent for various newspapers, who unfortunately died as the inventor of 'Bodyline' and not the Ashes winning captain of England, as he should be remembered.

Overall it is a fantastic book about a great servant of English cricket, with great readability. This book, as I said, sets the record straight.

Brilliant
Great book about a great great man. Jardine is despised by the Aussies for the infamous and very successsful bodyline attack of the 32/33 ashes tour. They, naturally, are unwilling to look beneath the surface of the aggression of leg theory. Us Englishmen can, though, and what we find is a man whose tactical genius is second to none, whose captaincy was inspirational and whose batting was marvellous. When Hussein inspirationally put a leg field in place in the last ashes series he was dipping in to the genius of Jardine. This book does a great job of archiving the life fo England's most talented caotain. Long may he be remebered.

Brilliant !!!
Jardine has always been a bit of an enigmatic character placed firmly in the cricketing shadows by all manner of factually incorrect and biased releases. It's good to see a book do justice to the genius, drive and great cricketing brain of the man. Jardine was a great batsman and an even greater captain. If only we had him now....