Product Description

In 2003, encouraged by Australian captain Steve Waugh, Ed Smith decided to keep a diary of his county cricket season. "Tell the truth as much as you can" was Waugh's instruction. This is the story of that highly eventful season…

Ed Smith’s decision to document his cricket season couldn’t have been timelier. The 2003 season began ominously for Kent when their captain David Fulton suffered a horrific pre-season eye injury, ruling him out of the team for the first half of the season and delivering a hammer blow to the whole squad. In the very first match of the season Smith was run out for three. His game, finely honed in relentless preseason training, suddenly appeared to be out of sync. The Kent team was in free-fall and suffered an embarrassing series of defeats.

Through self-belief, utter professionalism and gritty determination, Smith turned his season around. In May he scored 99 off 86 balls against Surrey and a few weeks later he struck four consecutive championship centuries, equalling a 75-year-old Kent record set by the great Frank Woolley. In June Smith became the first batsman of the summer to pass the 1000 run mark and in August was appointed captain of the team to play the tourists. However it was on the 9th August that Ed Smith achieved one of his ultimate goals and was selected to represent England in the Third Test against South Africa. What followed was a personal rollercoaster of triumph and failure.

On and Off the Field is a riveting insight into the daily life of a professional sportsman and the highs and lows of a cricket season experienced first hand. It is the story of self-doubt, frustration and competitive drive. Smith describes the prevalent sports psycho-babble of ‘core covenants’ and ‘team bonding’ and delves deep into the dressing room politics of the cricket world; the things left unsaid, the unresolvable disputes but also the enduring friendships.

Ed Smith’s first book, a comparative study of cricket and baseball called Playing Hard Ball, was published to acclaim in 2002.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #227369 in Books
• Published on: 2005-04-07
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 272 pages

Sunday Telegraph
"It is hard to believe there will be a better cricket book out this summer"

Synopsis
Ed Smith kept a diary of the 2003 cricketing season. It became a record of the most extraordinary summer of his life. The highs saw him become the first domestic batsman to reach 1000 runs, make four consecutive centuries and get a shot at playing for England. The lows involved a horrific injury to his captain and then saw his promising international career end almost as soon as it began. However, Smith's ability to conjure the thrill of the crease the batsman's exhilaration and fear as he's hunted relentlessly by bowler and fielder alongside startling insights into the game make this the definitive insider's book on modern cricket.

Customer Reviews

An Inside Line
A remarkable insight into the trials ,successes and failures of an intelligent if sensitive cricketer. An account of the stresses which life as a less than privileged Test cricketer places in a struggle for excellence at the highest level.

Superb introspective diary of a cricket season
Whilst serving as an overseas player for Kent, Australian captain Steve Waugh suggested to cricketer and author Ed Smith that he should keep a diary of a County Cricket season for his second book. A few meetings with publishers and agents later here it is - a diary of the remarkable 2003 season for the Kent batsman, the drama of which he couldn't have foreseen.

After early struggles, Smith hit a rich vein of form culminating in four successive first class centuries and a call up to the England Test side against South Africa. Three slightly underperforming Tests later, he is unluckily omitted from the touring party for the winter. An amazing roller-coaster season for the player giving added drama to a superb award-winning book.

With his regular sporting and arts columns in the Daily Telegraph and Times, the then 26-year-old Smith is no ordinary sportsman and this is no ordinary sporting book. Ed is unflinchingly honest and self-examining as he tries to improve his game as well as providing fascinating insights into the life of a modern County and Test Cricketer. It's not all introspective though and I found myself almost wanting to tap into his lifestyle - probably partly because, like me, he is something of a part-time writer with another main job.

On And Off The Field is an excellently written, thought-provoking book - essential for intelligent cricket fans and anyone who wants to know what makes an inward-looking sportsman tick,

Inside Smith's Head
This is a superb cricket book. Smith is an excellent writer & shares his innermost thoughts with the reader during a rollercoaster season.

It's hard to put this book down, and you feel like you're living the season - actually experiencing what it must be like - the doubts, anxieties & rewards of being a professional sportsperson. Recommended for any cricket fan (or as someone above wrote - if you enjoy good writing).