The Penguin World Cup Cricket Companion 2007 By Qaiser Mohammad Ali,
Rs 199

Qaiser Mohammad Ali should be complimented for coming out with an excellent statistical survey concerning the on-going cricket World Cup in the West Indies. Ali’s book is an ideal companion for those who are watching the tournament live, whether in the stands or on television.

Ali, a renowned statistician, has not missed a single issue, which is relevant to the championships. The World Cup began in 1975 and the author uses this year as the base of his survey. What is interesting to note is that Ali has chosen to exclude inane comments made by players and administrators. Instead, he concentrates on presenting little-known facts and figures.

For the sake of textual analysis, Ali has roped in the coaches of three major south Asian cricketing powers — Greg Chappell, Bob Woolmer (now sadly no more) and Tom Moody. Some of the current players who have lent their opinions include Virender Sehwag, Shaun Pollock and Andrew Flintoff. The two umpires, Daryl Harper and Simon Taufel, complete the list of interviewees. The Indian captain, Rahul Dravid, happens to be another contributor — he has written the foreword for Ali’s book.

The strength of the compendium lies in the statistical inputs and the information that are available on these pages. The summaries of the first eight championships are stocked with factual details, including scorecards of every match played between 1975 and 2003. These are followed by the player profiles; the data covers each member of the teams that are participating in the tournament. The information on umpires, match referees and venues is particularly useful. Besides all this, Ali also provides the complete itinerary of the 2007 World Cup.

The author has very sensibly highlighted the playing conditions involved in this particular tournament. There are other bits of information, which would delight those with an eye for trivia. For instance, in the West Indies, none of the matches is being played under the lights. Moreover, if either of the two semi-finals or the final ends in a tie, the winner would be decided by the ‘bowl-out’ procedure. This means that five players of either team are to bowl alternately at a set of stumps. The team with the most number of hits would be the winner. With such inventive rules in place, cricket fans all over the world can look forward to enjoy the glorious uncertainties of this great game.