Cricket correspondent for The Sunday Times, Simon Wilde, joins the podcast to discuss the life and career of the so-called 'Father of Indian Cricket' – K.S. Ranjitsinhji. Born in India in 1872, 'Ranji' – as he was universally known – arrived in England in 1888 to further his education, but took the cricket world by storm with his unorthodox but highly effective batting style. At the height of his success, he was as famous as W.G. Grace. But despite his 'magical' ability in the eyes of the British, he was plagued by many off-field issues throughout his cricket career, including financial complications and fighting for his right to become the princely ruler of a state in India.

ABOUT SIMON WILDE:

Simon Wilde has covered five cricket World Cups and more than 250 England Test matches as the cricket correspondent of The Sunday Times. He has written 12 books, including the bestselling England: The Biography, which chronicles the story of the men’s national team since 1877, and his latest publication is The Tour: The Story of the England Cricket Team Overseas 1877-2022. His biography Ranji: The Strange Genius of Ranjitsinhji was shortlisted for The William Hill Sports Book of the Year Award.

CREDITS:

Presenter & Producer: Tom Ford

All music used in podcast comes from the University of California Santa Barbara’s remarkable collection of wax cylinder’s from the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, which are free to download and use. You can donate to the upkeep of these recordings via their website.