*The Art of Captaincy* is the book every cricket captain should read and almost nobody does, because it is not about any particular match. Brearley captained England, and what he writes about is the job: selecting people, managing a dressing room of different temperaments, and staying sane while the result is decided by things you did not control.
Below: what the audio edition contains, how it is narrated, how long it runs, and three books that extend it.
The facts
| Audiobook | Who it is for | Length | Read by |
|---|---|---|---|
| The Art of Captaincy Mike Brearley with Ed Smith – introduction | The captaincy book, from a captain who did it | Roger May | |
| The Captain Class Sam Walker | Who actually makes a team work | Keith Szarabajka | |
| The Fighter's Mind Sam Sheridan | Leading under pressure | Nicholas Techosky | |
| The Art of Batting Jarrod Kimber | The craft side, from a player-coach | Jarrod Kimber |
What it covers
The Art of Captaincy — Mike Brearley with Ed Smith – introduction
Mike Brearley on the second job – selecting a side, managing a dressing room, and leading through a rebuild – read by Roger May, with an introduction by Ed Smith. It is a book about decisions rather than results, which is why it stays useful.
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The chapter on managing difficult people is the one most club captains quote, and the section on what to do when you are winning badly is the one they should.
Read by Roger May · Macmillan Digital Audio. Listen on Audible
The Captain Class — Sam Walker
Sam Walker on the coaches, the support staff and the lead group – the unglamorous jobs that decide results, read by Keith Szarabajka.
It is a corrective for anyone who thinks captaincy is about tactics.
Read by Keith Szarabajka · Random House Audio. Listen on Audible
The Fighter's Mind — Sam Sheridan
Sam Sheridan on what elite performers do differently when the stakes rise, with case studies from sport.
It connects the decision-making book to the psychology, and it is the one to read if the job is stressful rather than merely difficult.
Read by Nicholas Techosky · Audible Studios. Listen on Audible
The Art of Batting — Jarrod Kimber
Jarrod Kimber on batting technique, having played Tests and coached Australia.
It is the book to disagree with after the others, and the disagreement is the useful part.
Read by Jarrod Kimber · Bloomsbury Sport. Listen on Audible
Who it is for, and who it is not
**Buy it if** you captain anything, at any level. It is the most useful book about leading people in sport.
**Expect no drama.** The anecdotes are there to make a point, and the point is about process.
**Read the Walker book afterwards** if you are organising other people. It covers the roles Brearley did not hold.
How to get the most from it
The chapters on selection are the ones to re-read before a season, not after one.
Take the decision framework rather than the anecdotes: what would have to be true for this player to fit this team?
Common questions
Is The Art of Captaincy worth listening to? Yes – it is the standard-bearer for cricket captaincy and it reads better than it sounds.
How long is it? Almost fourteen hours, read by Roger May with an introduction by Ed Smith.
Is it only about international cricket? No. It is about leading people, and it applies to a club side of twelve as much as to a Test team.
Who should read it? Anyone who has to pick a team, manage people or handle a group of adults who would rather be somewhere else.
What else suits this book? The Captain Class for the support roles, The Fighter's Mind for pressure, and The Art of Batting for the technical side.
Written by the CricketGearGuru editorial team. Links above are affiliate links, which means we may earn a commission if you buy through them. It does not change the price, and it does not change the opinion.
