Grab Your Edition Wounded Tiger: A History Of Cricket In Pakistan Crafted By Peter Oborne Disseminated As Volume

book with a telling title

So true, . wounded tiger. Such great players of the game ruined by the politics of this troubled country,
Only wish it didn't hv so many minute details, . .
It was like missing the woods t or the trees, A captivating and engaging tale of Pakistan Cricket !
A must read for any cricket fan, A fascinating book that not only records the history of Pakistan cricket, but also gives a great insight into the formation and continual political and social changes and struggles of the country as well.
This was truly a riveting read, The author has done immense research which is evident in the numerous factoids and other bits of information strewn about, Though I found the immense amount of footnotes annoying at times, I did appreciate the amount of interviews collected and the reliance on archival information which together makes

for a very informative and credible reading experience.
The writing style however is what truly gripped me, The book was immensely enjoyable because of its narrative format and its clear the author is a fan of the subject matter and the numerous personalities involved but somehow manages to be objective and present both sides of a story.
I cannot recommend this enough to any cricket fan, this book is very detailed history of cricket in Pakistan it is both a strength and weakness with the book but overall did learn a lot about the game in country after partition inand the gradual growth of the game and the challenging atmosphere of current Pakistan This book is so much more than a history of cricket in Pakistan.
It is a history of empire and partition, of democracy and authoritarianism, Oborne's love of cricket and of Pakistan is self evident in this mighty tome and is dealt with fairly, without fear or favour although some English cricket captains come in for some unnecessary criticism in my opinion.
My view of Pakistan before I read this book was of a country barely surviving in a world of corruption, terrorism and fundamentalists, The love of Pakistan and its cricket which shines through from the author has tempered my criticism and has introduced me to a country which may be more beautiful than the initial viewing may suggest.
An outstanding book. Extremely well researched and well written, Whether you are a fan of the Pakistan team or not this become definitely is a must read for all Cricket lovers, This is a well researched book in which the author goes back into history and matches the start of the game in England with its origins in the sub continent.
The sections dealing with cricket in the sub continent before Independence are fascinating and so are the chapters detailing Pakistan's initial cricketing years, The initial heroes such as Kardar, Fazal, Hanif etc are also well covered as are incidents such as the Idrees Baig controversy

Where the book lacks is treating major incidents of historical nature equally.
For exam hole the Shakoor Rana incident is barely touched up, Pakistan's trump in the WC ofis not covered in as much detail as the Oval test victory over England, Maybe the author should have split his work in two volumes, one dealing with Pakistan cricket's early days and one covering more recent events

Overall still a great read for anyone wanting to read up on Pakistan cricket

Finally finished reading Wounded Tiger by Peter Oborne.
Mind is blown by the fighting spirit of Pak Cricket right from the start till date, Felt so good reading about Hanif Mohammad, Kardar, Imran Khan and MisbahulHaq the cricketer i admire the most after Dhoni, The part where they win their first test at Lord's, Hanif Mohammad'sagainst WI, attack on Sri Lankan team gave goosebumps, But my biggest problem with the book has to be that it dealt more with Politics than Cricket, Tape ball cricket got so little attention, Which makes sense because the author is a political correspondent but focus more on Cricket maybe Overall a good albeit a bit tough read, When it comes to history books, I'm a bit of an anorak, When it comes to cricket books, I'm more of a Parkha with all the furry trimmings, So a huge tome which sets itself out as a historical cricket book was almost more exciting than was containable and at times, this book did indeed soar to the sort of heights that I was hoping it would reach.
But then the next minute, it would bring the flying reader crashing down to earth with a sickening bang, For every bit of literary brilliance in this book and there were many there was a completely gauche moment which annoyed, frustrated and disappointed in equal measure.


This book is what it says on the tin a history of cricket in Pakistan, That is its strength there's barely a run, a dot ball or a nervous tap on the crease between balls that isn't recorded in this sumptuous tome.
But this is also one of its many weaknesses there is almost TOO much detail in the book and not enough analysis of what is behind the detail.


The constant footnotes are annoying and frustrating they cut across the rhythm of reading, often adding little if anything to the narrative, And when the footnote is important then why not just include it in the main narrative And the extensive bibliographical references are equally as frustrating, . .

as are the countless obvious factual mistakes eg, the record fourth wicket partnership CANNOT have started when the score was, and the Etonian cricketer surely didn't play for Harrow against Eton and these are just a couple of examples if there were obvious ones, how many not so apparent mistakes were contained within the book

But this mixture of poor editing and research/ knowledge apart, there were far more worrying flaws to this book.
Mr Oborne is fairly well known for his polarised views on any number of contemporary political situations he has written copiously on how Muslims are misperceived by elements of the "Western" press but he allows his prejudices to completely cloud his judgement throughout this book.
He constantly cries foul against mainly the English press, saying that they keep calling the Pakistanis cheats, Then he spends a sizeable chunk of his book describing how Pakistani umpires, and then Pakistani players, have been found guilty of cheating not only by objective external bodies, but also by a series of enquiries, courts and legal processes from within Pakistan itself.
His complete and abject failure to see the massive self contradiction in his own words do this book a great injustice,

He states that the Pakistani culture is a different culture to many of the other test playing nations but then fails to carry on properly with analyzing this statement, relying instead on yet another unillustrated hyperbolic generalization to try and make his point.
he misses a huge trick here for those of us who have played, done business, socialized and got to know south east Asians over the years, these different ethical approaches to sport from very different cultures are not that difficult to piece together and understand.
But its a piecing together that Mr Oborne fails to make through either laziness, ignorance or unwillingness, And its a shame, because the exercise is a very constructive and worthwhile one, and ends up in a situation where different cultures, by understanding each other , can come to some sort of compromise in many situations.
A lesson that could go way beyond cricket and sport if people really wanted to learn it,

I also have to question Mr Oborne's passions and motivations towards his core subject how much of a cricket fan is he really Many of my cricketing heroes have been Pakistanis, all of whom are mentioned in this book.
But Mr oborne doesn't appear to show any appreciation for Majid Khan's languid but deadly batting style, Zaheer Abbas' ability to thread a ball through the eye of a needle lying in the covers with a deft adjustment of the wrist, or Javed Miandad's adaptibility from marathon test innings to match turning attacking cameos, dispatching the ball to four quarters of the ground, on or over the grass as the mood took him.


Nor does he fully appreciate the art and science of some of the world's most fearsome fast bowlers Imran, Wasim, Waqar and Shoaib, I once told the story of having to open the batting against Shoaib in a test match in Lahore, with dusk starting to settle in, an excitable crowd roaring the Rawalpindi Express on, a lively track, millions of bugs in the dusty, warm air and above it all the call to prayers coming from all parts of the city.
I don't suppose facing Dennis Lillee in his pomp at the Sydney Cricket Ground was much of a picnic either, but the player who described facing Shoaib to me still had terror in his eyes telling the story many years on.


It is that sort of colour a situation unique to cricket in Pakistan which the book lacked, Whilst the facts and figures and the historical narrative of the development of cricket in Pakistan certainly stood up to scrutiny, the whole piece lacked soul as far as I was concerned.


I'm very glad I read it, it's given me a context which I didn't previously have on many of my favourite cricketers, as well as being an illuminating and rewarding historical expose.
But I can't help thinking that a chance or two was missed to have written a really significant book here,

Deeply researched and masterly account on Pakistan Cricket, Must Read for any cricket enthusiast! Peter has managed the impossible, somehow presenting mundane cricketing facts as a Scheherazade tale, From its modest beginnings, cricket in Pakistan has managed to become the defining feature for the nation, Most Pakistanis identify with cricket and live by it, But most don't know the intricate history of the game in Pakistan which somehow dampens the enthusiasm for the game, With this publication of this great book this glaring anomaly has finally been patched, Not only did the book cover all of the cricketing facts, but also personal profile of cricketers and the many controversies plaguing the much followed game.


The best aspect of the book for me the way Peter has juxtaposed Pakistan's cricketing prowess with the various political changes, from an insecure and cautious beginning to a team ruthless tigers, desperate to prove their mantle.


The end of the book was like a end of a classic movie, with the portrayal of the last days of the great Kardar , Fazal Mahmood, justice Cornelius and Hanif Mohammad.


Fantastic effort.
An engaging account of the Pakistan Cricket, Oborne has put great effort in writing this book, The beauty of this book is that he focuses more on the early days of Pakistan Cricket, He brings to discussion the forgotten chapters of Pakistan Cricket,
A great effort though a lot of things need further explanation,
He should also write a sequel of his wonderful odyssey after the retirement of MisbahulHaq, :P.