The Final Test

'A compelling book. Test cricket is hanging on. It's a worry' - Graham Gooch 'Huw Turbervill is the ultimate passionate polemicist for the Test format' - David Gower OBE THE EDITOR OF THE CRICKETER GOES ON A SOUL-SEARCHING JOURNEY TO DISCOVER WHAT THE FUTURE HOLDS FOR TEST CRICKET The Final Test is a love letter to cricket and a manifesto in favour of the Test format. Taking readers on a nostalgic journey, Huw Turbervill shares stories of cricket past and present and of the incredible characters the sport has encountered over the years. In exclusive interviews, he speaks to the likes of Viv Richards, Graham Gooch, David Gower, Merv Hughes, Richard Hadlee and more. In a tumultuous sporting landscape, the cricket community, however, seems undecided about the future of Test cricket. The IPL is expanding, The Hundred still seems to dominate the thoughts of English cricket's controllers, and the men's Ashes in 2023 was relegated to a narrow window. As T20 keeps growing internationally and domestically like Japanese knotweed, attracting more fans than ever before, is it still possible for the longer format to retain its wistful shine? Huw asks a five-star panel of cricketers, commentators and writers if Test cricket can truly survive the next decade. Shouldn't we keep a tradition filled with memories of days gone by? Could we instead try to maintain a healthy balance of formats all year round? How about accepting that times need to change? Are Huw and others too nostalgic and conservative? This book is the ultimate soul-searching journey around the great game.

Huw Turbervill has been the editor of The Cricketer since 2021 after 15 years at the Telegraph (doing some touring as Scyld Berry's sidekick). He started his career in Ipswich at the East Anglian Daily Times. His books include The Toughest Tour: The Ashes Away Series Since the War and The Cricketer's Anthology of the Ashes.

Introduction 1. How people learned to stop worrying and love T20 2. Testing thoughts 3. David Gower and my golden years 4. The Sky effect 5. Graham Gooch and Grandstand 6. Open a window for Test cricket 7. Why can't I be more like Jarrod? 8. Viv Richards: the king and I 9. Test cricket before 1980 10. Farokh Engineer and India 11. Test cricket in the 1980s 12. My love of county cricket 13. The Hundred, decisively divisive 14. Mudassar Nazar and Pakistan 15. Test cricket in the 1990s 16. Jack Russell, the artist 17. Test cricket in the 2000s 18. Merv Hughes coming in off his long run 19. Test cricket in the 2010s 20. Richard Hadlee, the prince of New Zealand 21. 2020 to . Bazball and beyond 22. International white-ball cricket 23. At home with the Topleys 24. My love of club cricket 25. Cricket journalism 26. Cricket and my family Conclusion: Let's talk up Test cricket References Bibliography Picture credits Acknowledgements Index