On Warne

by Gideon Haigh

Gideon Haigh on Shane Warne is an irresistible pairing: 'the finest cricket writer alive' (The Australian) on the greatest cricketer of our times. The resulting masterpiece is as much about our fascination with Warnie as it is about the player himself.

Who doesn't know the name Shane Warne?

Now that the Australian cricketer who dominated airwaves and headlines for twenty years has turned full-time celebrity and media event, his sporting conquests and controversies are receding steadily into the past.

But what was it like to watch Warne at his long peak, the man of a thousand international wickets, the incarnation of Australian audacity and cheek? Our leading cricket writer, Gideon Haigh, lived and loved the Warne era, when the impossible was everyday, and the sensational every other day.

In On Warne, he relives the era's highs, its lows, its fun and its follies. Drawing on interviews conducted with Warne over the course of a decade, and two decades of watching him play, Haigh assesses this greatest of sportsmen as cricketer, character, comrade, newsmaker and national figure – a natural in an increasingly regimented time, a simplifier in a growingly complicated world. The result is one of the finest cricket books ever written, a whole new way of looking at its subject, at sport, and at Australia.

One day, you might be asked what cricket in the time of Warne was like. On Warne is the definitive account.

Genres: Biography, Sports, Nonfiction, Australia

224 pages, Hardcover

First published September 13, 2012

About the author

Gideon Clifford Jeffrey Davidson Haigh (born 29 December 1965) is an English-born Australian journalist, who writes about sport (especially cricket) and business. He was born in London, raised in Geelong, and now lives in Melbourne.

Haigh began his career as a journalist, writing on business for The Age newspaper from 1984 to 1992 and for The Australian from 1993 to 1995. He has since contributed to over 70 newspapers and magazines,[2] both on business topics as well as on sport, mostly cricket. He wrote regularly for The Guardian during the 2006-07 Ashes series and has featured also in The Times and the Financial Times.

Haigh has authored 19 books and edited seven more. Of those on a cricketing theme, his historical works includes The Cricket War and Summer Game, his biographies The Big Ship (of Warwick Armstrong) and Mystery Spinner (of Jack Iverson), the latter pronounced The Cricket Society's "Book of the Year", short-listed for the William Hill Sports Book of the Year and dubbed "a classic" by The Sunday Times;[3] anthologies of his writings Ashes 2005 and Game for Anything, as well as Many a Slip, the humorous diary of a club cricket season, and The Vincibles, his story of the South Yarra Cricket Club, of which he is life member and perennate vice-president and for whose newsletter he has written about cricket the longest. He has also published several books on business-related topics, such as The Battle for BHP, Asbestos House (which dilates the James Hardie asbestos controversy) and Bad Company, an examination of the CEO phenomenon. He mostly publishes with Aurum Press.

Haigh was appointed editor of the Wisden Cricketers' Almanack Australia for 1999–2000 and 2000–01. Since March 2006, he has been a regular panellist on the ABC television sports panel show Offsiders. He was also a regular co-host on The Conversation Hour with Jon Faine on 774 ABC Melbourne until near the end of 2006.

Haigh has been known to be critical of what he regards as the deification of Sir Donald Bradman and "the cynical exploitation of his name by the mediocre and the greedy".[4] He did so in a September 1998 article in Wisden Cricket Monthly, entitled "Sir Donald Brandname". Haigh has been critical of Bradman's biographer Roland Perry, writing in The Australian that Perry's biography was guilty of "glossing over or ignoring anything to Bradman's discredit".[4]

Haigh won the John Curtin Prize for Journalism in the Victorian Premier's Literary Awards in 2006[5] for his essay "Information Idol: How Google is making us stupid",[6] which was published in The Monthly magazine. He asserted that the quality of discourse could suffer as a source of information's worth is judged by Google according to its previous degree of exposure to the status quo. He believes the pool of information available to those using Google as their sole avenue of inquiry is inevitably limited and possibly compromised due to covert commercial influences.

He blogged on the 2009 Ashes series for The Wisden Cricketer.[7]

On 24 October 2012 he addressed the tenth Bradman Oration in Melbourne.

Reviews

[Kaustubh Dudhane · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Sport is not life. Sport is better than life. Life is big, messy, confusing, contingent, compelling us to make decisions on the basis of imperfect information with finite resources, with no certainty about their outcome and no expectation of immediate resolution. Sport is bordered, unambiguous, unadulterated, meritocratic; it offers us simple questions, unqualified answers, straight lines, exact quantifications, winners and losers, heroes and villains."


Ball of the century, Ashes 1993

After reading Sphere of Influence: Writings on Cricket and Its Discontents, I felt that Mr. Haigh is just another jealous and sarcastic Aussie journalist. However, one knows when one is going to be on a ride when the book starts with -

"When he made his Test debut, he actually looked like that friend of a friend who turns up to help your club out on Saturday, who used to play but hasn’t for ages, who didn’t have anything on and thought it might be fun to have a bit of a run-around, albeit he’d had a few the night before and maybe you could put him somewhere quiet."

Eventually, I have found that sarcasm is the order of the day for Mr. Haigh. And I have loved it all the time while reading it. The book covers the idiosyncrasies of Shane Warne who is a cricket legend of all time. He talks about his earlier coaching, career, failed drugs test, IPL magic, a little bit of personal life and scandals. I have liked the part about his team mates and the chemistry between Warne and Steve Waugh who was his captain for almost 7 years.



Warne with Waugh (Right)

Although, both players had exactly opposite way of living, Gideon Haigh has written superbly about how they developed a workable relationship. Just like I had developed with my wife when I am reading late in the night. There are a couple of hilarious sledging moments in the book. E.g.

1) "After reading that (Daryll) Cullinan had sought help from a sports psychologist to deal with his feelings of inferiority, Warne bided his time, and greeted the batsman at their next encounter with: ‘What colour’s the couch, Daryll?'"

2) When Brian McMillan used to come to crease, Warne used to call Depardieu

And yes, one cannot miss this -



and more...



Okay, I am overdoing it.

When there was a lot of hype of Warne vs Tendulkar, when Australia toured India in 1998, Mr. Haigh writes -

"Tendulkar prepared for tackling Warne with days of assiduous practice against former colleague Laxman Sivaramakrishnan on wickets prepared to turn and bounce; the only way for Warne to have prepared for his encounter with Tendulkar might have been to bowl on a glass pitch against a wall of steel."

The book is a well written and non-malicious biography (considering Warne's color off-field behavior.) Gideon does not judge Warne and just accepts and loves him for what he is. I will like to round up with this brilliant quote -

"I have some expertise about Warne the cricketer, of whom I have seen much, but not much about Warne the person, with whom my relationship is comprehensively superficial. And, to be frank, that suits me fine. I only wished to watch him play cricket; I didn’t want to marry him."

[Siddharth · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is not, however, a life story…This is an examination of Warne’s craft, an analysis of his career, and a survey of his phenomenon, while I’m still able to remember what it was like to live through all of them. Perhaps it is inevitable that Warne the cricketer will eventually be effaced in public memory by Warne the image, but in the meantime some worthwhile purpose seems served by trying to reclaim him as a sportsman. To say that Haigh succeeds in his endeavour is akin to saying that Warne bowled the Bowl of the Day to Mike Gatting on the 4th of June, 1993 – a spectacular understatement. On Warne is an unmitigated delight.

The book’s 209 pages are divided into five chapters – the first examines how “cricket found Warne”; the second dwells on his art – Haigh’s loving, anecdote-flecked deconstruction of his bowling action makes for a delicious 12 pages of avid consumption; The Men of Warne examines Warne through his relations with four of his compatriots; the fourth focuses its gaze on Warne’s “trials” – the match fixing scandal, his affairs, and his year-long suspension from the game; the last details how he has fared with the “sporting zones” of masculinity, aggression and professionalism.

Haigh’s prose is perceptive and unhurried, flecked with anecdotes, and his wide reading imparts the book with a scholarly weight that it wears lightly. (While admitting that he courts Warne’s disapproval in writing this book, Haigh invokes Doris Lessing: “Isn’t this a simple matter? There are people who like to be biographied, but the one who refuse, may we not be excused? After all, we will be dead soon enough.”)

After an interview with Warne in 2006, the journalist Jana Wendt remarked that it was “uncommonly easy to like Warne and a little harder to explain why”. It is to Haigh’s credit that he succeeds at illuminating the former and demystifying the latter.

[Umesh Kesavan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Not even a single word is out of place in this little gem of a book which is more a selective portrait rather than a comprehensive biography. To appreciate the Warne Age, the one stop has to be this book rather than weighty tomes which cover career details match after match missing the larger picture completely.

The originality in the chapter "The Men of Warne" and the craftsmanship in the chapter "The Art of Warne" are worthy of special mention. A literary treat that ought to be read,discussed and reread again.

[A · Rating 5 out of 5]

Gideon Haigh! Keep calm and read him. If you can write a tenth of what he writes, you can become the best ever. Just a brilliant observation of the greatest leg spinner ever. Especially that part when he does about Warne and the four men who influenced him a lot. Just beyond any words. PS: Two or three lines about Sachin that made me ecstatic. Let's hope he writes something on the little master. )

[Roger · Rating 4 out of 5]

This may be the best cricket book ever written - it is the best I've read for a long long time (in fact since The Cricket War, also written by Haigh). As always in his writings, Haigh is incisive, thoughtful, and wide-ranging in his insights.

Not a biography of Shane Warne, On Warne is more a meditation on Warne the player, Warne the man, and on the "business" of cricket and fame. Divided into five sections - The making of Warne, The art of Warne, The men of Warne, The trials of Warne, The sport of Warne - Haigh has written a paen to Warne's ability as a bowler, an essay on other important players of Warne's era, an expose of the short-sightedness of Cricket Australia and other administrative bodies, and somewhat of a polemic against the shallowness and prurience of the media.

The opening pages of the book relate Haigh's first meeting with Warne - Haigh making the point that the media image of the man is not necessarily accurate - where he found him polite, helpful, and only too happy to chat for hours. Other reports throughout the book bear out this image of a polite suburban boy, who wants to be liked. Haigh's description of Warne's time at the Academy puts the lie to the generally accepted view that Warne was a disruptive influence, but does explain how cricket found Warne, rather than the other way around.

The second section of the book, The art of Warne, is perhaps the finest piece of cricket writing ever printed. If you don't know anything about Warne, about why he is possibly the best cricketer ever, one only needs to read this section, and it will become clear. Not only does Haigh describe with perfection the technical skill of Warne, he perfectly encapsulates his gamesmanship, his competitiveness, and the aura he built about himself, which made him a most formidable opponent.

Warne's relations with Australian cricket are dealt with in The men of Warne, via his relationships with a few key people - Glen McGrath, Stuart McGill, Steve Waugh and John Buchanan. Haigh's judicious use of statistics show how McGrath and Warne relied on each other, and that somewhat surprisingly McGill was a much more successful bowler in tandem with Warne, whereas Warne suffered in the partnership. The contrast between Warne and Waugh is thoughtfully put, with the decision to drop Warne in the West Indies in 1999 seen as the beginning of their rift which their opposing personalities did little to arrest.

Warne's identification with the "hard nuts" of the Australian teams of the 70s, especially his good relationship with Ian Chappell, comes to the fore in the discussion of Warne's relationship with Buchanan, which also looks at the idea of coaching as a whole - Warne agreed with Chappell that coaches were a waste of time - Haigh points out that was where the similarities with the older generation might end, as the travails of cricketers of that earlier and harder era were not something Warne had to deal with - Haigh suggests that Warne may not have handled them as well as he might think.

Inevitably in a book about the Warne phenomenon, there is discussion of his "indiscretions". However, what we think we remember may not in fact be the whole story. The Australian cricket authorities certainly did not cover themselves in glory during the whole betting saga, and Haigh shows how Warne was hung out to dry for something that in hindsight was obviously a stupid thing to do, but perhaps not so much at the time - the authorities lack of action over the Malik betting allegations worse than anything Warne may have done in his relations with "John".

As for Warne's personal "issues", Haigh notes that Warne was caught between two tabloid cultures in Australia and England. Whereas the redtops in the UK would expose Warne and then move on to the next titillating story, here in Australia the story would roll on and on. Warne was always bemused by the attention he received for his extra-marital activities. On more than one occasion he stated that it was a private matter, and, as Haigh points out, he was right - it's none of our business, and how important was it anyway?

I'm writing this review the day after taking my young sons to the MCG to see Warne in action in his T20 guise, so that they can at least say later on in life that they saw him bowl - I will be making sure when they are older they read this book, so that they can understand what it was like to see him in his glory. It's a cricket classic.

Check out my other reviews at http://aviewoverthebell.blogspot.com.au/

[Mayank · Rating 3 out of 5]

With his reputation as one of the finest cricket writer's around, Gideon Haigh's understanding of cricket was never in question. With this book, he excels in presenting what he calls the complete cricket personality; someone who is widely regarded as one of the greatest cricketers ever, yet is often misunderstood and at times even considered an enigma.
The book at best is a bullet-ed point biography of Shane Warne. While the initial chapters, focusing on making and art of Shane Warne, are a reader's delight, the book quickly jumps into the defense of Shane Warne. More than once, the book sounds like Shane Warne's advocate; trying to justify each of his on and off the field actions and often critically analyzing what others had to say about the man.
Where the book succeeds though is presenting the 'complete picture' by connecting the seemingly independent incidents while analyzing Shane Warne and each of his (mis)adventures. The book cleverly avoids the moral debate at places. The interspersion of philosophy, metaphors and constant references to other artists, sportsmen, celebrities and even movies and serials work like magic here and help it not sound like only a cricketing book.
A very decent attempt in completing the portrait of the enigma called Shane Warne.

[Heather · Rating 3 out of 5]

An interesting look at different themes of Warne’s life. This edition, updated with a reflection following Warne’s untimely passing, hits different than perhaps it would’ve a year ago. Having lived through and mostly hated the Australian cricket team’s dominance in the Warne years, it was good to read an overview of some of the peripheral activity to his success. The chapter on the bookmaking and drug test sagas was particularly interesting.

At times, Haigh is verbose and weirdly over intellectual for a book that is about a man who was not.

[Jarvo · Rating 4 out of 5]

Beautiful alternative to a biography this is a study, a prolonged essay, which isn't compelled to deal with all aspects of a subject or their career, but can hone in the things the author finds most interesting. And what Haigh, the doyen of Australian cricket writers, finds interesting is fascinating. To pick one highlight. Steve Waugh was captain of one of the most successful Australian cricket teams ever. Warne was its major asset. The two men hated each other with a vengeance but this had no discernible influence on the results they achieved together. Teamwork doesn't have to start with getting on. He is also great on the strategies Warne employed for prolonging his career, including being banned for a year for taking slimming pills.

[David Meldrum · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great writer on a great player; very little goes wrong. Less of a biography and more of a walking around the Warne phenomenon, looking at him from a series of revealing angles. At times the flourishes of prose verge on the poetic; had it been much longer this would have become tiresome but in the end the book's brevity enhances the experience of reading it. Beautiful, entrancing, enigmatic, revealing, contradictory. It's a book akin to it's subject matter which somehow achieves insight through keeping distance. An essential read for cricket fans, and a brilliant addition to cricket's rich literature.

[E.T. · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is not a biography, but takes a look at various aspects of Warne the cricketer and person. Goes deeper than other Warne biographies that portray him as a 'dumb blonde'. If u are a Warne-fan (or like Gideon Haigh), a must-read for u.

[Darren Richman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Not a conventional biography but instead five essays about a sporting icon. Australia's greatest sportswriter on Australia's greatest sportsman. One of the finest books ever written about cricket with references ranging from 18th century essayists to Peep Show.

[Connor FitzGerald · Rating 4 out of 5]

The greatest Test cricket leg spin bowler of all time is finally and properly honoured in this well-constructed and easy-to-read book by renowned cricket writer Gideon Haigh. A must read if you want to re-connect with Test cricket as it existed in the orbit of Shane Warne!!

[Preetam Chatterjee · Rating 5 out of 5]

#Binge Reviewing my previous Reads #Sports #Cricket

Gideon Haigh’s On Warne is more than a biography—it’s a love letter, an anatomy, and a meditation on the genius and contradictions of Shane Warne. To write about Warne is to take on a force of nature, a cricketer who was both a Shakespearean hero and a tabloid headline, and Haigh does it with elegance, wit, and razor-sharp insight.

What I adored about this book is how it refuses to flatten Warne into a one-dimensional figure. Haigh gives us Warne the magician, the man who resurrected leg-spin at a time when it was thought dead. He also gives us Warne, the flawed mortal—reckless, distracted, and addicted to excess. The brilliance of the book is in how it lets these two aspects co-exist without apology, as if to say, 'This was Warne; take him or leave him.'

Haigh’s prose is as fluid and deceptive as a leg break itself. He draws on anecdotes, match accounts, and reflections to build Warne’s world: the ball of the century to Gatting, the Ashes triumphs, the IPL reinvention, and the never-ending battles with authority. Yet, beneath the cricketing feats, Haigh keeps circling back to the essence of Warne—his need to compete, to entertain, and to spin not just the ball but the whole narrative of cricket around himself.

There’s a deep affection running through the book, but it’s never blind hero-worship. Haigh doesn’t shy away from Warne’s blunders—whether personal scandals, gambling escapades, or clashes with teammates. Instead, he treats them as part of the tapestry, the imperfections that make Warne’s story so irresistibly human.

What stayed with me most was the sense of Warne as a disruptor. He didn’t just bowl; he redefined what spin could be, made the impossible normal, and made batsmen doubt their very instincts. In a world of systems and strategies, Warne thrived on instinct, audacity, and sheer theatre. Haigh captures that anarchic spirit with rare grace.

Reading On Warne felt like being reminded why some players transcend statistics. Warne was art, chaos, and charisma rolled into one. Gideon Haigh’s book ensures that aura survives, not as myth but as lived reality.

This is not just a cricket biography—it’s a meditation on genius itself: unpredictable, flawed, dazzling, and unforgettable.

[Richard F · Rating 3 out of 5]

I expected a bit more from this book. I only saw half of Warne's career and I was keen to get some more insight, as well as reading Haigh ('the finest cricket writer alive). But I was left wanting.

I enjoyed half of the book (mainly the sports-related parts and especially the 'forming' of Warne through the AIS and his early days in the national team), but the remainder, focusing on Warne in the media and his misdemeanours, did not pique my interest as much. Haigh spends some time bemoaning the press (both the UK and Australian each in their own way), but then proceeds to dwell too long on this aspect of Warne than even he himself seems to think is fit.

I also was not fully appreciative of Haigh's writing style; I agree that he is a fine writer, but I feel that a style is best fitted to its topic, and the topic at hand does not seem to fit Haigh's long winded descriptive flourishes, exhaustive metaphors and sprinkling of French idioms. Warne was a peoples' cricketer - do him justice and write for the people is what I say.

Behind this however, there are insights within the pages that would be appreciated by anyone looking for a concise overview of possibly Cricket's greatest spinner, instead of picking up one of the heavy sporting tomes written about him. Good for a holiday read for a Cricket enthusiast.

[Simon Jones · Rating 5 out of 5]

I first went to a Test match in 1978, and nowadays try to attend two or three Test days a year, but there was a gap in the nineties and noughties which means I never saw Shane Warne bowl live. And reading this excellent book strongly makes me wish that I had.
It's not really a biography, more of a selective summary divided into five parts. The finest of these is the second one (The Art of Warne), about how his bowling developed over time. If it doesn't make you want to head to YouTube at once and start searching for the great man's finest wickets then this certainly isn't the book for you. But the other four sections are hugely enjoyable too.
The word genius is massively overused in the modern world, but Warne was, and this book explains why.

[Raghu · Rating 4 out of 5]

A holistic (and erudite) look at the phenomenon that is Shane Warne. From Warne's originality and easy mastery of the (already mystical) craft of leg spin bowling, to his mental makeup that allowed him rise to big occasions (further enhancing his legend and adding an edge to his bowling psychologically), and finally his celebrity (and tabloid) status along with the various indiscresions and blunders (insider and outside cricket). A true cricketing original portrayed by another.

[Andrew Walton · Rating 5 out of 5]

After purchasing in 2012, have read three times over the years. Unabashed fan of Gideon and his method. The gold here comes from a personal and deep analysis of the player and what has made Warne so good in the contest from the incredible highs and the unexpected conflicts that have been part of his career.

Having revisited this book since the passing of Warne, this is a masterpiece of sports literature in every sense.

[Joe Suffield · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was an insight into warne, what made him into the person he was. It’s interesting in the sense it doesn’t paint him as a hero. But it seems to suggest he operated in one of two spaces, brilliance or failure. Which I think isn’t fair. Equally, the book itself is slightly clunky operating chronologically and then thematically. The final section on his personal life seems out of place. As a book on warne though, perfectly readable.

[Barnaby Haszard · Rating 5 out of 5]

Perfection. Haigh is a great writer in any discipline, but especially cricket, and he gets Shane Warne in a way no-one else ever has -- the player and the man. Superbly researched and succinctly, effortlessly thorough in breaking down the Warne legend. It's almost impossible to separate my perception of Warne from Haigh's, so compelling is his portrait.

[Troy · Rating 4 out of 5]

The best cricket writer of my generation writing about the best cricketer of my generation.

Whilst I know the story well, the eloquent Gideon has the unique ability to reflect on Warne the cricketer. I enjoyed the cricket reflections. Having recently read the Mark Nicholas supported, autobiography, this was intriguing to cover a lot of the same ground in a completely different style.

4 stars

[Tamas · Rating 4 out of 5]

Greeted Nasser Hussain to the crease as Saddam. A prolific master of the sledge, often surrounded by other controversies, Haigh covers Warne’s decade-and-a-half of limelight. Interesting how he rose from suburbs, being told to kick booze in his early 20s or he wouldn’t make it and then came quite close to being captain of Australia. Fair to say sport changes lives

[Sanat Pai Raikar · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is not a long read. Much like Shane Warne's run up to the wicket. But like its subject's bowling, it arrests your attention and holds you in its spell. I finished the whole book in one sitting - a very refreshing take on the career of Warne, stripped down to its essentials, so to speak. Worth a read for all fans of Warne and all cricket lovers in general.

[Shankar Bhamidi · Rating 5 out of 5]

I decided to read this after the tragic and untimely death of Warne. Even if you don't care about cricket, a wonderful read, as a master wordsmith and scholar gives deep insight into multiple aspects of Warne's life, his career, and the impact of the mastery of his craft (of leg spin).

[Pradeep E · Rating 4 out of 5]

Instead of a standard biography, Gideon Haigh constructs a portrait of the brilliant Shane Warne by examining his origins as a bowler, his primary cricketing relationships, the evolution of his craft and the various controversies across his career.

[sriram Sripada · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not completely honest

In parts read more a propaganda for Warne than an honest biography.

Especially the defense of the match fixing allegations and Warne's affairs

[Varun Sharma · Rating 4 out of 5]

One of my fav players. One of my fav sport writers. Why would I not like it!

[Sudharsan · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars rounded down.

[Greg Robinson · Rating 4 out of 5]

very competent biography on a flawed individual; strange mix of cerebral author and numbskull sportsman

[James Peach · Rating 5 out of 5]

The only cricket book that anyone aside from a die-hard cricket person should read. It is everything that the literature about this sport (that spawns so many dreary books) should be.

[Jordan Powell · Rating 4 out of 5]

The perfect book for anyone who wishes they’d been alive during Warne’s pomp