Anderson swings £100k book deal
SPORTS AGENDA
James Anderson 's pivotal role as the leading Ashes wicket-taker has landed him a six-figure deal to write his autobiography. Spinner Graeme Swann was the only member of the England team committed to a book before the squad arrived in Australia last October.
However, Anderson's stellar performances have encouraged publishers Simon & Schuster to offer the swing ace an advance of more than £100,000 for his account of England's likely first series victory in Australia for 24 years.
Key figure: England's James Anderson
They want Anderson, who appeared on the cover of gay magazine Attitude although he is happily married, to describe life with England off the field as much as his bowling exploits.
Simon and Schuster faced fierce competition for the Lancastrian's signature despite a number of cricket books, including captain Andrew Strauss's autobiography, selling poorly after England's triumph over Australia in 2009.
But a fresh appetite for cricket literature was demonstrated when Hodder & Stoughton were prepared to gazump rivals HarperCollins, who had only a verbal contract for the Swann book.
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Saracens rugby union owner Nigel Wray is another captain of industry spotted at the Sydney Cricket Ground who will interest the ABC - Anyone But Clarke - brigade looking for a high-calibre candidate to challenge Giles Clarke next year for the chairmanship of the ECB. Wray, who has been linked with the post in the past, is a keen cricket fan as well as a close friend of Australia batting coach Justin Langer.
Shane Warne 's over-hyped, plug-fest of a chat show on Channel Nine has been ditched with only four of the five expected programmes being broadcast. Warne attracted decent guests but his interviewing style left a lot to be desired. So perhaps he can follow the charming advice he dished out to Sports Agenda yesterday and 'Get back on The Muppet Show.'
Australia will be desperate for any sign of hope after their Ashes debacle. And Ian Healy's 14-year-old son Tom is a good enough prospect to be sharing the glove duties with his former Test wicketkeeper dad when they play for a Bradman Foundation XI against Mark Nicholas's Chance To Shine team at Bowral in a 30-over celebrity game on Sunday.
Boxing Day hangover
Robbie Fowler , who paraded a replica Ashes urn before a Perth Glory football match this week, says: 'You wouldn't know the final Test is on because my team-mates have not said a word about the cricket since Boxing Day.'
And England's crushing superiority on that occasion was described by Australia's 2022 World Cup bid leader Ben Buckley as 'one of the most disappointing days in my life and I've known a few recently' - a reference to Australia only attracting one vote in Zurich. Buckley added: 'I was taking my son to the MCG as a rite of passage but it didn't turn out as we were hoping.'
Cricket fan: Robbie Fowler
Ashes heroes Kevin Pietersen, James Anderson, Graeme Swann and Stuart Broad have the maximum reserve price of $400,000 per tournament for the Indian Premier League auction this weekend. However, Kent journeymen Simon Cook and Darren Stevens are somehow valued at $300,000 and $200,000 respectively when Ashes centurion Ian Bell is available for only $100,000.
Former England favourite Derek Randall, the cricket coach at Alastair Cook's Bedford School, didn't wait until his former pupil's mountain of runs in Australia before claiming he was going to be a star. Randall told anyone who would listen that Cook would play for England when he was a 15-year-old wicketkeeper-batsman.
Dave Gilbert, chief executive of Cricket New South Wales, was so unimpressed with Cricket Australia ignoring the 50th anniversary of the 1960-61 Australia-West Indies series - acknowledged as the greatest ever - that he has organised for all nine surviving members of the Australia team to be flown to Sydney for a function in their honour at the SCG today.
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