Syed Khalid Mahmood improves record for penning sports books

Jumbo Editorial Team

By bringing out Asian Glory, Syed Khalid Mahmood has improved his own record of having authoring the highest number of cricket books in Pakistan. Asian Glory happens to be his 14th book. He had earlier rewritten history of sorts by with the publication of Reflections-2 in 2011 which was his 13th book.

With the publication of Reflections in 2010, he had equalled the record of Aziz Rehmatullah, one of the doyens of cricket statisticians in Pakistan, who wrote exactly a dozen books on the most popular sport of the country.

Aziz Rehmatullah’s maiden title, 26 Years of Pakistan Cricket, was published in 1979 and his last book, Calendar Year’s Kings, came out in 2002. He also happened to be the editor of Cricket World Quarterly which lived a charmed life in the late 1970s and early 1980s before its abrupt closure.

In between he authored World Cricket Annual (1980), Cricket Close Up (1981), Pakistan Test Cricketers (1981), Masters of Cricket (1982), Who’s Who in Test Cricket (1984), An Eye on Test Cricket (1986), 35 Years of Pakistan Cricket (1987), The Book of One-day Internationals (1989), Pakistan in One-day Internationals (1996) and Who’s Who in One-day Internationals (2001).

Syed Khalid Mahmood debuted as a published author with Focus on World Cup in 1975-87 (1987) and has gone on to write The Caribbean Challenge (1989), Pakistan’s Triumph in World Cup 1992 (1993), Focus on World Cup 1975-92 (1993) Pakistan: The Land of World Champions (1995), Pakistan’s Sports Greats (1997), So Near Yet So Far (2000), Spotlight on World Cup 2003 (2005), Top of the Charts (2005), Mission Caribbean (2007), Cricket Fever (2008), Reflections (2010), Reflections-2 (2011) and Asian Glory (2012).  

Ehsan Qureshi, having pioneered the idea of publishing books on World Cup cricket tournaments, has authored eight books already and the ninth one is under publication.

He’s the author of The Book of One-day Internationals (1986), Pakistan Snooker Book (1991), World Cup 1992 (1993), World Cup 1996 (1997), World Cup 1999 (2000), World Cup 2003 (2004), Fiasco (2008) and Crash of the Titans (2011). 

Brief Profile: Jamsheed Marker

Jumbo Editorial Team

Jamsheed Marker holds the distinction of being an ambassador to more countries than any other person, a fact duly acknowledged in the Guinness Book of Records.

He served as Ambassador of Pakistan continually for 30 years, in 10 different capitals, and nine further concurrent accreditation. Ghana was his first posting and then he represented Pakistan in Romania, Bulgaria, USSR, Finland, Canada, Guyana, Trinidad and Tobago, East Germany, Iceland, Japan, West Germany, France, the United States and finally the United Nations in New York City.  

He was appointed as ambassador-at-large for his years of service in September 2004 while he was awarded an honorary doctorate by Forman Christian College University, Lahore, in June 2011.

His autobiography ‘Quiet Diplomacy’ was published by Oxford University Press. Jamsheed Marker was a household name in Pakistan because of his cricket commentary, which he had to abandon to take up the diplomatic career in 1965.

Prior to that he formed a formidable duo with Omar Kureishi and their voice was considered synonymous with cricket. They ruled the hearts of the people with their artistry.

Having quietly celebrated his 89th birthday last year, he has kept himself occupied in scholastic activities. He lives in the house of his ancestors, located in Bath Island, Karachi, which was constructed by his grandfather in 1865.  

Foreword: Asian Glory

By Jamsheed Marker 

“Asian Glory” is the latest contribution to the prolific writing on cricket by Syed Khalid Mahmood, one of the foremost correspondents and experts on the game in Pakistan.

In recent times the focus of cricket has perceptibly gravitated towards Asia, where the sport has produced some of its finest players and certainly its largest crowds.

Khalid’s book is a timely response to this new and evolving phenomenon, and provides a succinct account of the matches played in the World Cup 2011.  

The multiplicity of teams participating in World Cup 2011, the varied venues with changes in weather and pitches, the extensive coverage in both the electronic and print media, and above all, the large and enthusiastic crowds, all contributed towards making World Cup 2011 a landmark in the history of cricket.

All followers of cricket are indebted to Syed Khalid Mahmood for his timely and lively compilation of the events that were part of the memorable World Cup 2011, and for his latest contribution to the literature of cricket, a game that we all love so much. 

**For obtaining a copy of Asian Glory, please write to jumbopublishing@yahoo.com or call Asad Raza at 0333-2304024. It is priced Rs 600 in Pakistan.

Syed Khalid Mahmood’s Asian Glory arrives

Jumbo Editorial Team 

Asian Glory, authored by Syed Khalid Mahmood, has arrived. The book is about the tenth edition of the ICC Cricket World Cup 2011 staged in Bangladesh, India and Sri Lanka.

It is ninth sports book to be brought out by Jumbo Publishing with the earlier titles being Spotlight on World Cup 2003, Top of the Charts, Mission Caribbean, Cricket Fever, Fiasco, Cricket Milestones, Reflections and Crash of the Titans.

Asian Glory is twelfth book to be authored by Syed Khalid Mahmood, whose earlier titles were Focus on World Cup, The Caribbean Challenge, Pakistan’s Triumph in World Cup 1992, Pakistan: The Land of World Champions, Pakistan’s Sports Greats, So Near Yet So Far, Spotlight on World Cup 2003, Top of the Charts, Mission Caribbean, Cricket Fever and Reflections.

Asian Glory is spread over 164 pages with 32 of them being printed in four-colour on art paper. It contains views of the author on the various aspects of the tournaments besides containing profiles and articles on the leading performers.

Asian Glory recaptures the excitement of the World Cup, which was hailed as the one of the greatest sporting events of the recent times.

A copy of Asian Glory costs Rs 600 in Pakistan with the shipment to be arranged by the publishers on a complimentary basis.

**For obtaining a copy of Asian Glory, please write to jumbopublishing@yahoo.com or call Asad Raza at 0333-2304024  

Sachin - A Tribute To The Legend launched in Mumbai

Jumbo Editorial Team

Sachin Tendulkar, one the greatest-ever cricketers and a former Indian captain, gave a perfect present to his admirers and well-wishers on the eve of his 39th birthday. It was in the shape of his book ‘Sachin - A Tribute To The Legend’ launched in his hometown Mumbai on April 23.  

The book, which is a fine collection of all the published reports of all the matches in which Tendulkar scored his 100 international tons, has been published by The Hindu Group of Publications. It also contains quite a few rare pictures of the master batsman with interesting statistical aspects.

The book was reportedly conceptualised after Tendulkar scored his 100th international century in the Asia Cup against Bangladesh in Mirpur on March 16.

There was a yawning gap of over a year, however, between his 99th and 100th century but he finally accomplished the feat which is unlikely to be surpassed.  

Although he had been scoring substantially even in this period the most famous of all centuries had somehow kept eluding him.

"Reading various articles and opinions in newspapers has played an important role in my career. I want to take this opportunity to thank you for putting this book together in a matter of few weeks," he acknowledged.

"It's a mammoth effort and thank you very much," the ever-smiling Tendulkar remarked in the launch function while expressing his gratitude to the publishers for releasing the book on the eve of his 39th birthday.  

"It gives me immense pleasure to launch this book. All the efforts taken by The Hindu mean a lot to me. Over the years I have made lot of friends and they are dear ones,” he observed.

"Our friendship has grown in a similar manner as The Hindu has grown. I cherish each and every moment I have shared with them," Tendulkar, flanked by Mumbai India coach Robin Singh and captain Harbhajan Singh, acknowledged.

"We thought this would be a fine gesture to have this book released by you on your birthday, April 24. We feel that this book will be a fitting tribute to your unparalleled contribution to the game, making India and the international cricket community proud," Arun Anant, the CEO of The Hindu group, explained the concept behind publishing the book.  

Obaidullah Baig showered with praise

Jumbo Editorial Team  

Obaidullah Baig, one of the towering personalities of the country, was showered with praise by a panel of distinguished speakers from different walks of life in an evening organised in his honour by the Idara Qalam Dost at the Sindh Governor’s House in Karachi on April 17.  

The learned speakers, including chief guest Iftikhar Arif and Sindh Governor Dr Ishrat-ul-Ebad Khan, who presided over the ceremony, recorded their appreciation for eminent scholar, researcher, journalist and documentary filmmaker Obaidullah Baig for having rendered monumental services to society.

Mohammad Ali Siddiqi, Prof Sahar Ansari, Ghayasuddin, Ghazi Salahuddin and Khushbakht Shujaat also spoke in the enlightening programme which was conducted by Ambreen Hasib Amber.

“God has blessed him a lot. Obaidullah Baig is one such blessing in the shape of a friend. He has written many a thing under different pseudonyms, including couplets, and has made hundreds of documentaries out of which 40 odd were on the Quaid-e-Azam and the Pakistan Movement,” Iftikhar Arif, himself a noted poet, remarked.  

“Ghalib has written in one his letters that if someone’s passion became his profession he should consider himself fortunate and Obaidullah Baig is one such person, who is also extremely compassionate having considerate nature,” he added.

Obaidullah Baig extended his gratitude to the organisers for holding the event in his honour. Modestly was reflected when he looked at the stage backdrop and said while it was true that he was a writer, a journalist and a documentary filmmaker but it was difficult to think of himself as an intellectual for he knew what it meant and had read people like Ghalib, Khusrau, Iqbal and Faiz.

He said he had been a television producer for more than 30 years and wanted to become a journalist from a very early age. He also talked about his novel Rajput which was published last year. v> 

Double century of posts on Jumbo Publishing’s Blog right up!

Jumbo Editorial Team

This is post number 200 on the blog of Jumbo Publishing which was uploaded in January 2011. After 21 posts in the first month and another 15 in the following month, there have been a dozen posts every month since then
.  

The first-ever post on Jumbo Publishing’s blog was ‘Book Review: Spotlight on World Cup 2003’ on January 16, 2011. The century of posts on the blog was completed with ‘Architect Arif Hassan’s Shirakti Taraqi launched’ on August 4, 2011 and now the double century is being raised with this write-up on the blog itself.  

With the phenomenal growth of social media all over the month, it has become all the more important to produce and publish crisp yet useful material on the web to further the interests of the company.

The blog of Jumbo Publishing has gone beyond sharing about the company’s own publications only. It offers much more than just ‘promotional’ contents.

It has continued to put together books related activities taking place in the various places of the world. The coverage of local, national and international publishing events has increased its popularity.

Jumbo Publishing’s blog, primarily because of its contents, has attracted readers from all over the world.