3 Review(s)

‘Mihir has followed Indian cricket since his school days in Mumbai and The Nine Waves in his own style will bring out the subtleties and the nuances, pulls and pressures, the culture and colour, the politics and the people that make Indian cricket different from other countries’.’ —Sunil Gavaskar ‘The Nine Waves will captivate all.’ —Ravi Shastri ‘Mihir Bose is fantastically well informed on world cricket and has great insight into the game.’ —Moeen Ali The Nine Waves is a tour de force. The most entertaining and comprehensive book on cricket in this country to be published yet, it tells the story of the nine great waves that have rolled through the history of Indian cricket, from India’s international debut in 1932 to the incredible achievements of Virat Kohli’s team today. Each wave or era was chock-full of mesmerizing stars, thrilling moments, great victories, heartbreaking losses and significant turning points—this book tells the story of each of them in great detail. The first wave of Indian cricket rolled in against the background of momentous changes in the country and the world: Gandhi’s civil disobedience campaign, World War II and India becoming independent. Through each of the successive waves, India strengthened its position in the cricketing firmament. Towards the end of the twentieth century, it became the most powerful nation in world cricket—the prowess of the national team today matches the economic strength of the cricketing establishment. As a five-year-old, the author saw Vijay Hazare, India’s first test-winning captain, play. Since then he has been witness to some of the most dramatic moments of Indian cricket: India’s first win in England in 1971, Kapil Dev lifting the World Cup in 1983 at Lord’s, Tendulkar’s first Test century at Old Trafford in 1990, Sunil Gavaskar scoring his 30th Test century, the 2011 World Cup in India where M. S. Dhoni emulated Kapil Dev, Virat Kohli in 2018 in England proving he is the best batsman in the world today and much much more. He brings to the book his first-hand experience of some of the most seminal moments in Indian cricket, his encyclopaedic knowledge of the game and his unrivalled ability as a chronicler of the sport to create a magisterial history of Indian cricket. Once dismissed by the English as the dull dogs of cricket, India is now eagerly courted by all cricketing nations. On the field its cricketers are displaying skills which make India a worldbeater. Over a billion Indians, the greatest fan base in the world, treat their cricketers as demigods. The Nine Waves is a fitting testimonial to the game’s only superpower.