Cricket's Hard Men
Cricket's Hard Men takes an innovative look at character, psychology and mental health in cricket to produce a fascinating study of the sport's toughest players.
So, what actually constitutes a hard man of cricket? The truth is there is no simple definition. Whether it's resilience to defy injury from players like Kepler Wessels, Mike Atherton and Allan Border; sheer physicality from cricketer turned cage fighter Adam Hollioake; the bloody-mindedness to snub tradition by Douglas Jardine and John Reid; a chest-thumping need from Arjuna Ranatunga to show pride for a flag that had a reputation of being soft in the cricket world; or the blind courage of Brian Close, each player has his own unique story, told here through in-depth research and exclusive interviews.
The author consulted prominent ex-cricketers and broadcasters before studying this select band, from Australia, England, India, New Zealand, Pakistan, South Africa, Sri Lanka, the West Indies and Zimbabwe.
Richard Sydenham worked as a cricket journalist for The Daily and Sunday Telegraph, Reuters, the Associated Press, ESPN Cricinfo, the Daily Star Sunday, Gulf News in Dubai, Bloomberg News, the New York Times and the Sydney Morning Herald. He now owns and runs a professional cricket agency, managing some of the world's elite cricketers. This is his ninth book.