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ATHERTON, MIKE: : OPENING UP: MY AUTOBIOGRAPHY

LONDON.HODDER & STOUGHTON,2002.

ISBN 0340822325.

UK,8vo HB+dw/dj,1st edn.[Complete number line 2 4 6 8 10 9 7 5 3 1.] NFINE/FINE.No owner inscrptn and no price-clip to dw/dj.Bright, crisp,clean,glossy laminated,author/subject's portrait colour photographic illustrated dw/dj,with silver gilt+blue lettering; with negligible shelf-wear or creasing to edges and corners - no major nicks or tears present.A tiny snick to front top corner.Top edges with some minimal dust-soiling and subsequent spotting/ foxing,fore-edges slightly aged/toned but generally and clean; contents bright,tight, clean,solid and sound - no dog-ear reading creases to any pages' corner tips,appears unread - apart from my own collation.Publisher's bright,crisp,clean,sharp-cornered - the top two corners minimally bumped - original plain dark blue cloth boards with bright,crisp,blocked silver gilt letters to spine/backstrip and immaculate plain pale blue endpapers.Book has a slight lean.UK,8vo HB+dw/dj,1st edn,ix-xvpp+1- 330pp [paginated] includes acknowledgements with photographic acknowledgements to it's reverse, author's preface,20 chapters and an epilogue, 32pp contemporary b/w+colour (the majority) autobiographical photographs in 4 blocks of 8pp apiece, between pp48/9,pp112/13,pp208/9 and pp272/73 respectively,an appendix,a Captain's report,career statistics and an index; plus [unpaginated] half-title+title pages,dedication and contents list/table,and 6pp blanks at the rear of the book. From England's most capped captain,Mike Atherton's very personal account of England's fortunes,and of his own,over the past decade is of absorbing interest.For much of his Test career his was the wicket most prized by the opposition,and his account of innings against the great fast bowlers,Allan Donald,Curtly Ambrose,Courtney Walsh and his nemesis,Glenn McGrath,takes readers into the heat of battle, sledging and all. Appointed captain of England when he was just twenty-five,he analyses,with unusual honesty and objectivity,his own sometimes stubborn character and the reasons for his often cool relationship with the press.He provides a perceptive assessment of his own successes and failures and describes his long-term battle for fitness against a painful and debilitating condition of inflammation in the joints. The 'dirt in the pocket' episode,told by means of the diary he kept,makes for fascinating reading,both for his own part and that of the match referee,Peter Burge. These revealing insights make his observations of others involved in the game more authoritative. His sometimes uneasy relations with so-called 'cricket supremo' Ray Illingworth reveal some of the difficulties facing an England captain off the field of play.However,his loyalty to his players,and theirs to him,is clearly evident. Atherton chooses not to disguise his opinions of certain selectors during his tenure as captain; these views on the state of English cricket and the conditions needed for the building of a strong Test side are an important contribution to the current debate (then 2002). Possibly the most thoughtful England captain since Mike Brearley,his uncompromising assessment of himself and vivid pen portraits of fellow players from Gooch and Gower to Stewart, Thorpe and Nasser Hussain are most revealing.A born writer,with the gift of a light touch,this is Atherton in his own words. At sixteen he captained the England Under 19 team and he was made captain of the full England side in 1993 at the age of twenty-five.He represented England in 115 Test matches and captained his country on a record 54 occasions. He has a regular newspaper column in the 'Sunday Telegraph' and is a commentator on Channel 4.He was awarded the OBE in 1997. Please contact seller,for correct shipping/P+p quotes - particularly ALL overseas buyers - BEFORE ordering through the order page! N.B. ALL buyers please note,stocks' actual shipping/P+p costs are adjusted and any difference is refunded,after order's receipt and before the order's despatch,especially if the item(s) are offered either P+p included/FREE.    ** N.B. US/Canada customers please be aware: Standard AIRMAIL postage from UK to these destinations can now cost more than the price of the book! If speed is not of the essence, then Economy rate is recommended - at approx. anything from a 1/3rd to 1/2 of the standard US AIR quote/rate - sometimes arriving sooner than the 42 days - but not always. **

UK,8vo HB+dw/dj,1st edn.
Not SIGNED.

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