If I had to choose between my wife and my putter... well, I’d miss her.
Over But Not Out
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Richie Benaud, London, Hodder & Stoughton, 2010
Over But Not Out, Richie Benaud, London, Hodder & Stoughton, 2010ISBN 978 1444 70592 8 403 pages and 12 pages of photographs.
The book is an autobiography of Richie Benaud and so much more. Now aged 80 (2010) Benaud has experience of “in excess of 500 Test matches as a player, watcher and commentator”.
The book charts his career as a leg spinner taking over 200 wickets for Australia whom he also captained and his career as a journalist and TV commentator. In an era where most cricket commentators are ex-players, it is important to remember than Benaud was the pioneer. As early as 1956 he took a broadcasting course to prepare himself for live after cricket.
Richie Benaud is never shy at giving an opinion and the opinions are generally worth listening to. For someone of his generation he has a thoroughly modern mind and approach to cricket, espousing Twenty-20, day-night games etc. As he puts it “In 2010 cricket is still a game, but it is also a multi-faceted business.”
The best part of the book is the asides. He describes his life and events chronologically but is easily distracted into analysis. For example when writing of Sachin Tendulkar, he cannot resist comparing him with Bradman, Sobers and Richards – fascinating stuff. Similarly discussing Ian Chappell leads to naming the 5 best captains in history.
He is a great observer and analyst, who draws on his experience. When he evaluates Ricky Ponting’s decision to put England in, in 2005, we are reminded that the writer is a former captain of Australian has three times put the opposition in to bat.
He played in the 1961 Tied Test and reflects on it, quoting Don Bradman, “This is the best thing which could possibly have happened for cricket”, and struggling to reconcile his agreement with his frustration that Australia had thrown away a probable victory. This again leads to a reflection on whether 1961 was the greatest ever test series or was it 1981 or 2005.
His 4 pages on leg spin is a bowling master class as is his short chapter on Shane Warne.
Towards the end of the book he faces some of the issues in modern cricket and gives us his solutions – slow over-rates, the referral system. The chapter called “Stop Press” should be read by all cricket administrators, captains and umpires. One feels that if Benaud had his way, cricket would be a better game.
An excellent book, well worth reading.