Portrait of a Cricketer

Hedley Verity

Former winner of the Cricket Society's Jubilee Literary Award

Alan Hill is a Yorkshire-born sports journalist and writer. His other books include biographies of Johnny Wardle - Verity's spin successor with Yorkshire and England - and Herbert Sutcliffe, with which he won the Cricket Society's Jubilee Literary Award for the second time in 1991.

The name of Hedley Verity, the master bowler of unyielding menace, is one to be cherished more than 50 years after his death. Allan Hill tells the story of a magnificent sporting obsession in this reissue of the first full-length biography of a revered cricketer. Verity headed the English first-class bowling averages in his first season with Yorkshire and twice took ten wickets in an innings in consecutive seasons. Overall, his mesmeric left-hand spin yielded 1,956 wickets, including 144 for England, in less than ten years. 
 
The book, winner of the Cricket Society's Jubilee Literary award in 1986, contains a foreword by Sir Donald Bradman (whom Verity twice dismissed at Lord's in June 1934 to mastermind England's only victory over Australia at cricket's 'headquarters' in a century). It also includes a revealing memoir of Verity's boyhood and an Australian tour journal (1932-33) kept by the Yorkshireman for his relatives and friends. 
 
The story ends with a graphic account of Verity's ultimate heroism during the Second World War and is followed by a full statistical analysis of his career.

Alan Hill

Hill's account of the amazing lives of the Bedser twins is likely to be rated his best

A touching and rewardingly heroic biography of sports most eminent, and inseparable, ancients

Twinning Truimphs

Sporting twins Alec and Eric Bedser are a remarkable duo. From humble origins at Woking to their reign as key members of the Surrey team during the magnificent succession of seven championships in the 1950s, they share a rare and precious relationship. 
 
The Bedsers is Alan Hill's engrossing study which explores the puzzles of their identical twinship. Alec Bedser was England's bowling standard bearer in the years following the Second World War. His exceptional strength and prowess yielding almost 1,924 wickets, including 236 in 51 Tests. He was at the peak of his powers in the 1953 series against Australia, when his aggregate of 39 wickets beat the previous record held by Maurice Tate. It included match figures of 14 wickets for 99 runs at Nottingham - a feat only surpassed against Australia by Wilfred Rhodes, Hedley Verity and Jim Laker. High among his other distinctions was his record against Don Bradman whom he dismissed on eight occasions. 
 
After retirement, Alex maintained his connection with cricket in fulfilling administrative duties, which included a record term as Chairman of the Test selectors. Knighted in 1997 for his services to cricket, he is the only English bowler to receive the honour.

The Bedsers

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Hill's account of the amazing lives of the Bedser twins is likely to be rated his best

A touching and rewardingly heroic biography of sports most eminent, and inseparable, ancients

Books by Alan Hill

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