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Win a copy of Cricketing novel featuring Port Elizabeth

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USA based Gaurav Bhalla has released his first novel, The Curse and the Cup. This 390-page novel is set in South Africa, and tells the story of three generations of prodigious left-arm spinners in the Lingani family from New Brighton, Port Elizabeth. The author shows his love of cricket and the book offers even non-cricketers an easy Billy Elliott-type plot that retains shine and movement to its final ball.

The grandfather, Vuyisa, becomes a bowling legend in New Brighton and dreams of international cricket, but he is “coloured” and his ambitions are soon dashed in 1966 apartheid South Africa. He and his wife, Mama Nonkosi, have a similarly talented son, Manga, who in turn has a boy, Themba.

However, when Vuyisa and Manga die in 1991, Mama Nonkosi blames their deaths on the racism of South African cricket, and curses its Proteas team never to win the game’s ultimate prize, the one-day International Cricket Council (ICC) World Cup.

Bhalla cleverly links the curse to subsequent World Cup failures of South Africa’s cricket team. Since their 1992 return to international cricket, the Proteas have often entered the tournament as favourites, only to lose several key, but potentially winnable, matches.

Mama Nonkosi entrusts her curse to Themba, but “somewhere in the early 2000s”, he dreams of playing for South Africa, to fulfil his father and grandfather’s dreams, and absolve the Proteas of their apartheid legacy, so that the team can at last win the 2015 ICC World Cup.

Torn between two family loyalties, Themba seeks the advice of an old family friend who sets him up with coaches who recognise his natural talent, and perfect his bowling with Shaolin-like discipline. However, the more Themba plays against his grandmother’s wishes, supernatural voices threaten to hobble his talent.

Gaurav Bhalla is a Reston, Virginia-based PhD who has spent the past 25 years on the international corporate speaking circuit. His 2010 book, Collaboration and Co-Creation: New Platforms for Marketing and Innovation, was well-received in business academic circles, and his first attempt at fiction is this cricketing novel, The Curse and the Cup.

The distributors of The Curse and the Cup, Porcupine Press, are giving away five free copies of the book. CLICK HERE to enter.

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Alan Straton

Chief Cook, Bottle Washer and Broom Mechanic at MyPE
Passionate about Port Elizabeth and definitely NOT packing for Perth. Alan's ethos is epitomised in the words of Nelson Mandela; "I have fought against white domination and I have fought against black domination. I have cherished the idea of a democratic and free society. If need be, it is an ideal for which I am prepared to die." See more articles by Alan.