CRICKET SOCIETY AND MCC BOOK OF THE YEAR AWARD 2025

Worrell, written by Simon Lister, has won the Cricket Society and MCC Book of the Year Award for 2025.

The biography of West Indian Sir Frank Worrell triumphed at the annual awards ceremony in the Long Room at Lord’s.

Lister spoke about his fears that Worrell's legacy - ensuring that West Indies were welcomed, valued and admired in the commonwealth of international cricket - was close to being lost for ever.

“The West Indies haven’t played a five-Test series anywhere since 2009. It’s difficult to excel at the greatest form of the greatest game when you haven’t been immersed in it for 16 years", said Lister, who thought what he called “a cruel and unusual punishment” had been visited on West Indian Test cricket.

Chair of Judges Robert Winder enthused about a shortlist filled with high-quality historical content: “As a rule we hope that our shortlist will showcase the full range of cricket writing, but this year six historical works pushed their way to the front of the queue. That does not mean they dwell only on the past, however: all of them resonate with present-day, even topical concerns.”

Books about Brian Close, 19th century women’s touring teams, contrasting Ashes fortunes in 1926 and 1974-75 and the cricketers of 1945 were also celebrated.

The Stephen Fay Award was also presented to Tanya Aldred, for her contribution to cricket coverage, in particular her work in support of county cricket and sustainability.

The Book of the Year competition, run by The Cricket Society since 1970 and in partnership with MCC since 2009, is for books nominated by MCC and Cricket Society Members, and is highly regarded by writers and publishers.

The 2024 winner was The Tour: The Story of the England Cricket Team Overseas 1877-2022, by Simon Wilde, published by Simon and Schuster.

The six books on the 2025 shortlist were:

Striking Summer, How cricket united a divided nation, Stephen Brenkley, Fairfield Books

One Hell of a Life, Brian Close, Daring, defiant and daft, Stephen Chalke, Fairfield Books

Worrell, The brief but brilliant life of a Caribbean pioneer, Simon Lister, Simon & Schuster

The Cricketers of 1945: Rising from the ashes of World War Two, Christopher Sandford, Pitch Publishing

Blood on the Tracks, England in Australia, The 1974-75 Ashes, David Tossell, Fairfield Books

Forgotten Pioneers, The story of the original English lady cricketers, Giles Wilcock, Pitch Publishing

Other books on the final long list were:

Batting for Time, The fight to keep English cricket alive, Ben Bloom, Pitch Publishing

Echoing Greens, How cricket shaped the English imagination, Brendan Cooper, Constable

Richie Benaud’s Blue Suede Shoes, The story of an Ashes classic, David Kynaston and Harry Ricketts, Bloomsbury

Lara, The England Chronicles, Brian Lara with Phil Walker, Fairfield Books

An Unusual Celebrity, The many cricketing lives of Bill Bowes, Jeremy Lonsdale, Pitch Publishing

Clyde Walcott, Statesman of West Indies cricket, Peter Mason, Manchester University Press

Bill Edrich, The Many Lives of England’s Cricket Great, Leo McKinstry, Bloomsbury Sport

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