On Warne by Gideon Haigh

JUDGES' COMMENTS

With wit, passion and insight, Gideon Haigh takes the reader into a fascinating period in Australian sport. More than a biography on an iconic Australian sporting figure whom other writers have parodied or sensationalised, Haigh ignores salacious tabloid-style sensationalism to deliver a canonical account of an outstanding sportsman and interprets a critical period of Australian sporting history, explaining why the Warne era was such a landmark for Australian cricket and why he fascinated the public who watched him, admired him and were puzzled by him. At its heart, this is a book about the elements that need to be present to bring out greatness, why sports appeal to a national psyche and the matrix of relationships and circumstances that have to conspire to produce a sporting hero.

Haigh’s gift is that he can write on a specialised subject in a way that will engage, intrigue and delight a generalist audience. Even the more technical aspects of the book are executed with clarity and a sense of story and drama. Through a series of interconnected essays, Haigh shows that any subject, in the hands of a talented writer, can intrigue the reader and break long held prejudices and preconceptions.