Book Review - The Valiant Cricketer: the Biography of Trevor Bailey by Alan Hill

With the exception of Ian Botham, Trevor Bailey was the greatest all-rounder in English cricket after World War Two. Younger fans may state the case for Andrew Flintoff, but the Lancashire man's reputation was based largely on two outstanding series against Australia, with plenty of fallow periods in between.

I never saw Trevor Bailey play, but in the words of my father, you'd want him in your side every time. A schoolboy cricketer of prodigious feats and talent, he emerged from school into the austerity of post-war Britain and bestrode it like a colossus for well over a decade. In this time he won matches and saved matches with bat and ball alike, home and abroad.

His lasting reputation as a stonewaller, largely based on two or three rearguard actions that have passed into legend, is not entirely deserved. Bailey had, and could play all the shots. He frequently did for Essex, but on national duty he often subjugated the attacking urges in order to nurse the tail to a defendable total. That's what he did when he wasn't responding to a crisis by opening the innings, a model technique allowing him to handle the fastest of bowlers with bravery and considerable skill.

As a bowler he had all the assets required. Pace, accuracy, variations and a cricket brain second to none. When conditions required it he could cut down his pace and bowl cutters that posed problems for the great and the good. As a fielder he was reliable; as an able lieutenant and adviser to his captains he was priceless. 28,000 runs at 34; 2000 wickets at 23. Anyone still think Flintoff was better?

This is a delightful book by Alan Hill, who is a veteran of cricket biographies, with sterling efforts on Hedley Verity and Jim Laker among my favourites. It is nicely arranged, with the chapter on his family especially appreciated. So too is the obvious work that went into researching Bailey's school record, while the statistical section at the back of the book is one of the best that I have seen.

His time as a valued and succinct contributor to Test Match special is well covered, with Bailey's ability to encapsulate events in the minimum of words highlighted nicely. 'Very good bowler; bad day', 'Good county bowler, struggling at this level'  - the overly verbose contributors to the modern Test Match Special could learn a lot from him. Listening to Bailey and Fred Trueman on the radio was being granted an audience with cricketing gods. Vic Marks and Jonathan Agnew, for all their aural talents, simply don't compare.

Faults are hard to find in an excellent book, although a tale about Bailey and Trueman's inability to pronounce the name of West Indian spinner Raphick Jummadeen (sic) is given delicious irony with an incorrect spelling. Nonetheless, this is a fine book for those who remember when cricketing giants caught the bus to the ground and continued to visit their local club for social events.

Trevor Bailey was a truly great cricketer, fully deserving a book that does him justice.

Alan Hill has delivered just that and deserves every credit for a delightful read.

The Valiant Cricketer: the biography of Trevor Bailey is published by Pitch Publishing and is available on Amazon for £14.44 and from all good book shops