Interestingly if "The Ball of the Century" had hit Gatting's legs he would not have been out, as it pitched outside leg. I have always thought the need to pitch in line is a strange rule. The only criteria should be was it going to hit the stumps.
I was about to post a near identical comment. This is the example when I use when arguing about LBW law reform. The batsmen do get on their high horse! #batsmen aresooks
A great story. Warne was easily the greatest player I’ve ever seen and, much as I admired Muttiah Muralitharan, I’ve always felt it was a shame he finished with more Test wickets than Warne. Being a Leg spinner is infinitely harder than turning it from the Off, and Warnie did it with such confidence and flair. Is there a more memorable picture in sport than Warne bowing, sunhat upturned in his right hand, as he acknowledges the crowd’s applause?
What a stirring piece, GH. I remember reading this book and thinking how the name of the book was so basic and yet so comprehensive. I wrote my own Warnie tribute after his death and it felt so unfulfilling, it feels so even now. Future generations will never really know what it felt to be a viewer when he turned his arm over.
The most fascinating cricketer of my lifetime, perhaps only rivaled by being dazzled as a youth by I V A Richards. I keep dipping back into On Warne: like all the great cricket books since Beyond a Boundary it knows that cricket’s revealing of both national and individual personality like few other sports and is richer than a book about a single individual has any right to be.
Sometimes I wonder if he was destined never to be old, but then think that’s sentimental bilge occasioned by missing him. He’d never have gotten old, not as a thinker, a personality nor the in memories of how he expressed his personality on the field. Thanks for capturing him so deftly Gideon.
A brilliant article about a shining star who graced the greatest game. And I support England...
Great piece. Thank you Gideon
Interestingly if "The Ball of the Century" had hit Gatting's legs he would not have been out, as it pitched outside leg. I have always thought the need to pitch in line is a strange rule. The only criteria should be was it going to hit the stumps.
I was about to post a near identical comment. This is the example when I use when arguing about LBW law reform. The batsmen do get on their high horse! #batsmen aresooks
A worthy new foreword to my favourite sports-book, the only one I've ever re-read. You capture, not just Warne's sporting significance, but also and more significantly, his generosity of spirit. It was beautiful, post his passing, to read so many testimonials to that generosity from people with whom he'd had a random encounter. This is one of my favourites: https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2022-03-05-the-unforgettable-act-of-kindness-shane-warne-displayed-to-me-as-a-cub-reporter/
That's a great piece, Mark. And, yes, an entirely characteristic act.
What a wonderful anecdote. Thanks for sharing this link, Mark.
A great story. Warne was easily the greatest player I’ve ever seen and, much as I admired Muttiah Muralitharan, I’ve always felt it was a shame he finished with more Test wickets than Warne. Being a Leg spinner is infinitely harder than turning it from the Off, and Warnie did it with such confidence and flair. Is there a more memorable picture in sport than Warne bowing, sunhat upturned in his right hand, as he acknowledges the crowd’s applause?
What a stirring piece, GH. I remember reading this book and thinking how the name of the book was so basic and yet so comprehensive. I wrote my own Warnie tribute after his death and it felt so unfulfilling, it feels so even now. Future generations will never really know what it felt to be a viewer when he turned his arm over.
https://cricketwithpohejalebi.substack.com/p/to-warnie
Artful piece, EC. Thanks for the link.
Intriguing piece, Gideon
Beautifully capturing everything about him.
A great bowler, I wish he has captained Australia
I lost count of how many times I smiled and nodded while reading this article on the train this morning. Miss him.
If anyone ever asks me why I pay to read one writer, and they do, then this article answers it. Brilliant.
Ah Gideon, thank you once again for so eloquently summing up what so many of us feel about having seen Warnie in his prime.
The most fascinating cricketer of my lifetime, perhaps only rivaled by being dazzled as a youth by I V A Richards. I keep dipping back into On Warne: like all the great cricket books since Beyond a Boundary it knows that cricket’s revealing of both national and individual personality like few other sports and is richer than a book about a single individual has any right to be.
Sometimes I wonder if he was destined never to be old, but then think that’s sentimental bilge occasioned by missing him. He’d never have gotten old, not as a thinker, a personality nor the in memories of how he expressed his personality on the field. Thanks for capturing him so deftly Gideon.