Cricket writing these days

[Mr. Wicket]

Who do you think are the best cricket writers around, in terms of books and news/website articles? Are there any you go out of your way to read? Are there any sites/writers you avoid?

[ViruRulez]

I try to avoid the timesonline articles.. they always seem to be anti-India without any valid reasons on their favor.. Michael Atherton's articles are especially pathetic

[Shehezaada]

Prem Panicker

[Kohum]

I usually read Prem Panicker's posts - for he puts some thought on what he writes. I avoid dileep Premchandran however, Paisa fek tamasha dekha type writing he has.

[graphic23]

I am actually quite the opposite, nandya. Prem Panicker bores me. He thinks he knows too much while he doesn't. Dileep's articles are usually delightful reads. I enjoy them a lot.

[King]

I don't quite read any particular writer's articles. I almost always avoid Cricinfo articles given their penchant for quoting stats every second line. Cricinfo writers reckon they play cricket on paper with a calculator. They can't write things beyond worrying about the numbers. There is more to cricket than just numbers. The quality of cricket played is never mentioned in Cricinfo articles.

[Mr. Wicket]

Ravi - look out for Max Bania in the NZ press. Buddy of mine, VERY passionate young writer who has just started writing for the TVNZ.co.nz site. Serious cricket fan and very knowledgeable.

[King]

Will do mate, cheers.

[Prudent]

I like Rohit Brijnath (THE HINDU)

[Prudent]

Tendulkar still teaching lessons An exceptional performer can recalculate his skills and alter himself, says Rohit Brijnath http://www.hindu.com/2007/11/21/stories/2007112163162100.htm

[Tapioca]

I have never seen cricket statistics being murdered as horribly as in Ananth Narayanan's It Figures in Cricinfo blogs. This column is an example for how thoughtlessly, pointlessly and commonsense-lessly numbers can be used.

[Lord]

I like Rohit Brijnath (THE HINDU)

Isn't this the same idiot who asked SRT to retire n called him lots of things

[The Outsider]

I have never seen cricket statistics being murdered as horribly as in Ananth Narayanan's It Figures in Cricinfo blogs. There is an idiom about giving something (can't remember what) to monkeys and this column is an example for how thoughtlessly' date=' pointlessly and commonsense-lessly numbers can be used.[/quote'] Touche. I don't read his garbage anymore, but still get the chuckles thinking about when he did elaborate calculations and regressions to come to the conclusion that the best ODI bowling unit was WI in the early 80s and batting unit Australia in the 00s.

[Lurker]

I have never seen cricket statistics being murdered as horribly as in Ananth Narayanan's It Figures in Cricinfo blogs. This column is an example for how thoughtlessly' date=' pointlessly and commonsense-lessly numbers can be used.[/quote'] :hysterical: good to see I am not the only one who dislikes his work. In fact the first time I read his article I shot an angry comment saying how numbers essentially murder the spirit of the game, how it was all mindless calculation and (in a moment of hyperbole perhaps) that such a number churning effort could only have come from an Indian. Was then overrun by all and sundry and dismissed as a self flaggelating Indian. But I stick to my guns. Like you and Shwetabh I find his piece absolutely distasteful.

[Macj]

Who do you think are the best cricket writers around, in terms of books and news/website articles? Are there any you go out of your way to read? Are there any sites/writers you avoid?

Abassi for comic relief and Samuiddin for some reasonable reading from next door.

[vvvslaxman]

To be honest.. cricket writing is good from some of the bloggers and some forummers. It is better than the professional writers sometimes.

[Gambit]

I look forward to Rohit Brijnath and Dileep's writing. www.cricketwithballs.com is a pretty funny take on cricket developments around the world. Tapoica, your friend has announced who the greatest batsmen of all time are - http://blogs.cricinfo.com/itfigures/archives/2009/05/the_great_test_batsmen_a_look.php

[bunny]

I like the "It Figures" on cricinfo blogs. Usually it's Ananth who does the posting...His assessments are usually incorrect and his methodlogy is usually error-prone and way too subjective but more often than not there are hidden gems in there. The best post has been about the best test bowlers with Malcolm Marshall coming out on top. I also like the "Numbers Game" by Sambit Bal. (It's much more objective but it's less about ranking players and more about discovering stats from some ongoing series or tournament). Andy Zaltzman's blog is also good.

[Mr. Wicket]

That stats blog (like so many other raw stats blog) is painful to read. Of the blogs on cricinfo's, I do enjoy Mike Holmans' blog a great deal. Wonderful with words, and amazing insight. (FWIW, he's also the person who coined the term 'Yuseless' that I then so shamelessly ripped off.) Don't read the writers that much, aside from the ed. pieces from Sambit Bal, and guest pieces from people like Fazeer Mohammad, Gideon Haigh and Peter Roebuck. Read the Guardian in the UK only for its cricket coverage. Great site, Lawrence Booth is brilliant and I love the 'Spin' and the OBOs. Mike Selvey is also a brilliant writer. Sydney Morning Herald is decent for Roebuck and occasionally Gideon Haigh's essays. In India, Makarand Waingankar is really excellent to read with his views and coverage of domestic cricket. The Hindu and Mumbai Mirror are great sites for their cricket coverage. Among books... Akash Chopra has recently written a fabulous book called Beyond the Blues. Reading it right now... expect a review on ICF soon of that and some other cricket literature. :winky:

[Mr. Wicket]

I like the "It Figures" on cricinfo blogs. Usually it's Ananth who does the posting...His assessments are usually incorrect and his methodlogy is usually error-prone and way too subjective but more often than not there are hidden gems in there. The best post has been about the best test bowlers with Malcolm Marshall coming out on top. I also like the "Numbers Game" by Sambit Bal. (It's much more objective but it's less about ranking players and more about discovering stats from some ongoing series or tournament). Andy Zaltzman's blog is also good.

Ananth doesn't seem to know much about the game. Bal on the other hand is a really knowledgeable and passionate guy, and I have a lot of regard for his writing and his perspective on cricket and cricket literature. (Although I do wish as an editor, he would give domestic cricket in India, Australia and England greater focus and promote some of the blogs more rather than trying to appeal to casual fans who barely read the site with things like the new IPL Page 2 and getting cheerleaders and dancers to write columns. Mike Holmans writing on games for Middlesex or the too-rare pieces on Ranji/Duleep games really deserve to be highlighted a lot more. Wish Akash Chopra's blog would also make a comeback (although another reminder; watch the Cricket Articles section and look out for a review of his new book soon!) Zaltzman - yup, fun to read. Although if you like his style of reading, you should read the Guardian (and their OBOs) a bit more. Great stuff.