Playing for Keeps: The Autobiography of Alec Stewart

by Alec Stewart

With over 125 Tests behind him, Alec Stewart always maintained a batting average over 40 runs. He has demonstrated that someone who can keep wicket to an exceptionally high degree, as well as score an impressive 15 Test hundreds, deserves to be known as one of England’s greatest ever all-rounders. His story is that of someone deeply in love with cricket, fortunate to have inherited outstanding sporting genes, but supremely professional at utilizing that natural talent to the ultimate degree.

Genres: Biography

256 pages, Hardcover

First published September 1, 2003

Reviews

[Richard Olney · Rating 4 out of 5]

It was a recent article in The Cricketer about Alec Stewart where the author argued that Stewart was one of the most under-rated cricketers of his time that made me chose to read this book again. I think the article is right.

Stewart's love of the game is evident, almost on every page. It's only towards the end where he deals with the Zimbabwe 2003 World Cup real drama and the preceding year's rucks with the press and management of the England team where this love for the game is sidelined for the sake of other concerns, though even then he's not down for very long if at all.

That it's an autobiography tends to mean he's overly modest. Not all autobiography is but this one certainly is. When Stewart talks about his great achievements it's always in the context of his pride in having done it, how it usually meant the team won and again, most of all, how much he loves the game.

I don't know whether i underrated Alec Stewart as a Cricketer and man before but i certainly don't now. I don't even mind that he supports Chelsea.

This is a good cricketer's autobiography and a good sporting autobiography.

[Steve Morris · Rating 1 out of 5]

He was a dull cricketer, imagine what his biograohy is like!

[Steve · Rating 3 out of 5]

Great guy, great cricketer but the book is largely narrative