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Overthrowing Cricket's Empire: How Every Team Beat England for the First Time
Cricket was once used as a tool to colonise. What happens when those countries grow up? Overthrowing the Empire at Cricket unearths the audacious stories of teams toppling the cricket colossus, England.
From W.G. Grace's Ashes-igniting run-out to Calum MacLeod's modern heroics, the book spans 150 years of fierce history. New Zealand's unexpected draws in 1949, Zimbabwe’s poultry farmer heroics, Ireland's audacious chase and hair, India’s elephantine triumph and South Africa’s spin saga are all etched in defiance.
This is a book about a bunch of Davids taking on Goliath. Every chapter has tales of the greatest English players and the men who stood up to slay them. The narrative transcends sport – a testament to resilience and national identity. Amid victories, there’s human drama.
Overthrowing the Empire at Cricket isn’t just about cricket; it’s an odyssey of liberation, the essence of competition. Cricket is a sport that builds nations, and this book takes you through it brick by brick.
From W.G. Grace's Ashes-igniting run-out to Calum MacLeod's modern heroics, the book spans 150 years of fierce history. New Zealand's unexpected draws in 1949, Zimbabwe’s poultry farmer heroics, Ireland's audacious chase and hair, India’s elephantine triumph and South Africa’s spin saga are all etched in defiance.
This is a book about a bunch of Davids taking on Goliath. Every chapter has tales of the greatest English players and the men who stood up to slay them. The narrative transcends sport – a testament to resilience and national identity. Amid victories, there’s human drama.
Overthrowing the Empire at Cricket isn’t just about cricket; it’s an odyssey of liberation, the essence of competition. Cricket is a sport that builds nations, and this book takes you through it brick by brick.
- GenresSportsNonfiction
204 pages, Kindle Edition
Published July 27, 2024
12 people are currently reading
82 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
January 17, 2025
I've loved Jarrod Kimber's writing for a long time and the narratives that he weaves together, so I was very excited to read this book. Unfortunately though it was a very interesting read, it didn't quite meet the standard I expected from his articles. He seemed to find some difficulty in expanding his style to longer narratives, and the thing that was most distracting was the jumping around in chronology got too distracting at points.
I know that putting the reader in media res, and then giving backstory and then returning to the action is often a highly effective technique to tying ideas together, but it can get too muddled if there's too much detail in a short place. Sometimes he'll tell you the story of a match, cut that off, give you backstory, and then in the process of giving you backstory tell you the story of another match, and then jump back into the other match he was talking about. Sometimes this can make all the figures quoted confusing and adrift from context.
The book is structured to basically tell the story of the first match where a team beat England. Well, more or less. Occasionally it isn't the first match per se but the first one on a big stage, or that people took notice of. The basic rule of thumb seems to be that it's the match with the best story attached. I think it would have been more easily readable if the chapters were bifurcated into the story of the team and players, and then the narrative of the match itself, rather than intertwining them so much.
Another oddity that I suppose can't be helped much, is the different styles of writing used in the first and back half of the book due to the different periods involved. Matches from 100+ years ago, of course, rely on cricket writing and historical research. For the more recent matches, such as Scotland and the Netherlands, Kimber has interviewed all of the very much still alive players, and some of the chapters are dominated by their quotes. These add insight, but do make the back half of the book feel less narrative driven. Of course, we also have full video ball by ball coverage of these games, so there isn't any mystery to be teased out. I don't think there was a real solution but it is an odd element to the book.
In the end notes of the book, it mentions that Jarrod Kimber had some sort of injury when writing and needed lots of help finishing the book as a result. Unfortunately, this does show. The proofreading is patchy enough to be distracting - lots of little words are missing in sentences, and there's a strange grammatical preference for short individual single clause sentences. Instead of using commas. Which is the more common choice.
The book was still enjoyable, and Kimber's knowledge and humour shines through. I did enjoy reading it quite a lot, even if it was a bit less than I'd hoped. If 3.5 stars was an option that's what I'd have given this book.
I know that putting the reader in media res, and then giving backstory and then returning to the action is often a highly effective technique to tying ideas together, but it can get too muddled if there's too much detail in a short place. Sometimes he'll tell you the story of a match, cut that off, give you backstory, and then in the process of giving you backstory tell you the story of another match, and then jump back into the other match he was talking about. Sometimes this can make all the figures quoted confusing and adrift from context.
The book is structured to basically tell the story of the first match where a team beat England. Well, more or less. Occasionally it isn't the first match per se but the first one on a big stage, or that people took notice of. The basic rule of thumb seems to be that it's the match with the best story attached. I think it would have been more easily readable if the chapters were bifurcated into the story of the team and players, and then the narrative of the match itself, rather than intertwining them so much.
Another oddity that I suppose can't be helped much, is the different styles of writing used in the first and back half of the book due to the different periods involved. Matches from 100+ years ago, of course, rely on cricket writing and historical research. For the more recent matches, such as Scotland and the Netherlands, Kimber has interviewed all of the very much still alive players, and some of the chapters are dominated by their quotes. These add insight, but do make the back half of the book feel less narrative driven. Of course, we also have full video ball by ball coverage of these games, so there isn't any mystery to be teased out. I don't think there was a real solution but it is an odd element to the book.
In the end notes of the book, it mentions that Jarrod Kimber had some sort of injury when writing and needed lots of help finishing the book as a result. Unfortunately, this does show. The proofreading is patchy enough to be distracting - lots of little words are missing in sentences, and there's a strange grammatical preference for short individual single clause sentences. Instead of using commas. Which is the more common choice.
The book was still enjoyable, and Kimber's knowledge and humour shines through. I did enjoy reading it quite a lot, even if it was a bit less than I'd hoped. If 3.5 stars was an option that's what I'd have given this book.
November 30, 2024
Nice look at how every team beat England for the first time.
October 19, 2024
This book is fantastic in a way that you are transported back in time, and can feel the magnitude of each match, each player, and each draw or victory.
The point where it drops down a star out of 5 for me is the way it's written. Jarrod has written this book like he makes his YouTube videos. It works in the video format where he speaks fast, keeps sentences short and precise, states facts, and keeps it going. But it doesn't work in a book format.
He keeps jumping from one date to another, from one year to another, series to series, player to player, stat to stat, and it all just jumbles up in your head after a while.
He could have gone into more detail and made sure that he explained things a little more thoroughly. The book would have been a little longer, but it would have made more sense, and wouldn't have had that sense of urgency to it. If I am reading this book, it's because I WANT to know about these players, these teams, the political environment these series are set in, and all the other tiny details that make these historic stories important. But Jarrod short changes us here by keeping it way too short and way too quick.
The way he wrote the Ireland, Scotland and Afghanistan chapters was really nicely done. We got to hear from the players themselves how it all went down and what it meant. Of course that isn't possible to do for a win that took place in the early 1900s, but the writing style in those earlier chapters could've been closer to that at the end.
I still love this book, I just don't like the way it's written.
The point where it drops down a star out of 5 for me is the way it's written. Jarrod has written this book like he makes his YouTube videos. It works in the video format where he speaks fast, keeps sentences short and precise, states facts, and keeps it going. But it doesn't work in a book format.
He keeps jumping from one date to another, from one year to another, series to series, player to player, stat to stat, and it all just jumbles up in your head after a while.
He could have gone into more detail and made sure that he explained things a little more thoroughly. The book would have been a little longer, but it would have made more sense, and wouldn't have had that sense of urgency to it. If I am reading this book, it's because I WANT to know about these players, these teams, the political environment these series are set in, and all the other tiny details that make these historic stories important. But Jarrod short changes us here by keeping it way too short and way too quick.
The way he wrote the Ireland, Scotland and Afghanistan chapters was really nicely done. We got to hear from the players themselves how it all went down and what it meant. Of course that isn't possible to do for a win that took place in the early 1900s, but the writing style in those earlier chapters could've been closer to that at the end.
I still love this book, I just don't like the way it's written.
June 15, 2025
I've never played cricket, watched cricket, or been remotely interested in cricket, but because I made a resolution to read more books I normally wouldn't go for, here I am. Pleasingly, OVERTHROWING CRICKET'S EMPIRE is a spirited story of how different countries beat England's cricket team. Sometimes these accounts begin by discussing the star players' upbringings, or sketching out key moments in each match, while others might emphasise what the players or pundits had to say about the events. That said, while this may be what its target readership expects, the book goes into exhaustive detail listing the scores and other minutiae in each match, and I would've been curious to see the author elaborate on the wider social and political implications of these matches—how did they affect race relations or international politics in the longer term? What did these defeats do to England's self-image? Considering its title, I'd have liked to see Kimber connect the otherwise episodic chapters of this book by looking in more depth about the historical changes they trace.
August 12, 2024
It's not really a collection of the first time every team beat England (Ind/WI/Ban don't have their initial win examined in too much detail), but more the most important/most cathartic of their early wins. Once you get past the minor confusion of that, this is a great collection.
Jarrod is the best writer currently working in cricket, he's great at letting you feel the impact of winning a game of cricket that is more than just a game. Cricket was framed as a "civilising tool" by the Empire, so it means something extra for the formerly colonised countries to beat the English, and we never really lose sight of this big picture across every chapter and every match description.
There's also many many anecdotes that come up in the process - the elephant on the pitch to celebrate Ganesh Chaturthi when India toured England in 1971 (yes, not the other way round), Pakistan losing their first Test centurion because he jumped out of a window when confronted by his famous lover's husband, New Zealand trying to recruit a Fijian and many others. Overall, this is a great read.
Jarrod is the best writer currently working in cricket, he's great at letting you feel the impact of winning a game of cricket that is more than just a game. Cricket was framed as a "civilising tool" by the Empire, so it means something extra for the formerly colonised countries to beat the English, and we never really lose sight of this big picture across every chapter and every match description.
There's also many many anecdotes that come up in the process - the elephant on the pitch to celebrate Ganesh Chaturthi when India toured England in 1971 (yes, not the other way round), Pakistan losing their first Test centurion because he jumped out of a window when confronted by his famous lover's husband, New Zealand trying to recruit a Fijian and many others. Overall, this is a great read.
August 22, 2024
The book holds true to it's promise of talking through about what each team/country felt about England, and how they went about defeating them, and eventually how it (mostly) advanced them into much better teams and proud nations.
The parts with Ireland, Netherlands and Scotland were my least favourite. They contained alot of quotes from the players who have played in the games. Although a novel idea, I preferred Jarrod's narration of the events to the quotes.
All in all though, it's a good book for someone who's interested in the history of the sport.
The parts with Ireland, Netherlands and Scotland were my least favourite. They contained alot of quotes from the players who have played in the games. Although a novel idea, I preferred Jarrod's narration of the events to the quotes.
All in all though, it's a good book for someone who's interested in the history of the sport.
February 11, 2026
Excellent for someone learning about the sport and its historical giants, someone interested in colonial history in the Commonwealth, or for anyone with a passing interest in the game that's lasted from W.G. Grace to Virat Kohli.
January 12, 2025
Book's great if you love cricket and hate the English cricket team FIVE STARS
November 17, 2025
"India were a joke not long after they started playing Test cricket. Not because they weren't talented. They weren't even the worst team, New Zealand had them beat there. It was because they took the very worst of English cricket, the amateur class structure, and allowed one of the worst International cricketers ever to lead them on their second tour of the UK."
I had enjoyed Jarrod Kimber's Test Cricket: The Unauthorised Biography a lot. It is such a different type of a narration than your typical cricket journalist does. Hence, I was a lot excited about this one when Jarrod used to mention it in the outro of this YouTube videos.
Some good, some boring: Since Mr. Kimber sets a high bar for his writing, I was a tad disappointed. I loved the chapters for Zimbabwe, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Afghanistan and one more which I will come to soon. There were a few interesting trivia regarding the Fijian IL Bula (yes, the cricketer with the longest name ever), the incident regarding Noor Jehan's husband, and the disgrace from W.G. Grace. However, I felt a bit indifferent about the rest of the chapters. I believe because there are multiple writers and I could see the difference in the tone of some of the chapters.
The Best Chapter: I loved the chapter on the England Women. I haven't read or know anything more about the women's cricket in the last millennium. This was quite an eye-opener where Mr. Kimber and others captures the struggle of the women cricketers and what Rachael Heyhoe-Flint did for the women's game. It is surprising to know that MCC and England were totally different and what opinion Jack Hobbs felt about the women's game.
A mixed bag for me!
I had enjoyed Jarrod Kimber's Test Cricket: The Unauthorised Biography a lot. It is such a different type of a narration than your typical cricket journalist does. Hence, I was a lot excited about this one when Jarrod used to mention it in the outro of this YouTube videos.
Some good, some boring: Since Mr. Kimber sets a high bar for his writing, I was a tad disappointed. I loved the chapters for Zimbabwe, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Afghanistan and one more which I will come to soon. There were a few interesting trivia regarding the Fijian IL Bula (yes, the cricketer with the longest name ever), the incident regarding Noor Jehan's husband, and the disgrace from W.G. Grace. However, I felt a bit indifferent about the rest of the chapters. I believe because there are multiple writers and I could see the difference in the tone of some of the chapters.
The Best Chapter: I loved the chapter on the England Women. I haven't read or know anything more about the women's cricket in the last millennium. This was quite an eye-opener where Mr. Kimber and others captures the struggle of the women cricketers and what Rachael Heyhoe-Flint did for the women's game. It is surprising to know that MCC and England were totally different and what opinion Jack Hobbs felt about the women's game.
A mixed bag for me!
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews