By His Own Hand: A Study of Cricket’s Suicides is one of the most important and confronting works in cricket literature, written by the eminent historian David Frith. First published in 1990, this landmark study examines the hidden personal toll of the game, documenting cases of cricketers who took their own lives across different eras and countries.
 
Frith approaches the subject with sensitivity and scholarly care, combining archival research, personal correspondence, and contemporary reporting to explore how pressure, identity, injury, selection failure, and post-career displacement affected players long before mental health was openly discussed in sport.
 
The book is widely regarded as the first serious, comprehensive examination of mental health in cricket.
 
The foreword by Peter Roebuck situates the work within the broader culture of the game, reinforcing its importance not only as a historical document but as a catalyst for later conversations about welfare and responsibility in professional sport.
 
This book has some water damage. Discounted sale on clearance.