When Roy Keane's publishers chose this Thursday -- October 9 -- as the date to release the controversial client's new autobiography, did they not know that they were clashing with a certain Kevin Pietersen?
If there is one person who could trump Keano for headline-making revelations, then it is KP.
Pietersen's first major pre-publication interview appeared in the Daily Telegraph on Monday, prompting just about every national newspaper to clear their pages for the inevitable reaction.
The Times have exclusive extracts to the Keane biography, The Second Half, which is ghosted, interestingly, by the Booker prize-winning Irish novelist Roddy Doyle, and give them due prominence.
Elsewhere, however, he barely gets a look-in as cricket correspondents and chief sports writers get to grips with KP's revelations and the fall-out, which has already reached levels unprecedented in the long history of cricket books.
Keane was helped when a Tesco store in Greater Manchester inadvertently -- or so we are to believe -- put The Second Half on their shelves three days early, enabling the contents quickly to find their way into the media.
But next to Pietersen's version of the events that led to his acrimonious parting of the ways with England's cricket team, there is a danger that none of Keane's revelations, quite a few of which cover old ground anyway, will seem that exciting.
In short, a book that would have sold itself had it appeared on October 9 last year, next year or in any other year, in all probability, will need an extra push.
Meanwhile, Pietersen's attacks on Andy Flower, on Matt Prior, on England's supposedly bullying bowlers, his opinions on Andrew Strauss, Alastair Cook, Peter Moores and Paul Downton -- all make compelling reading.
Ironically, so much has been revealed and so much comment passed in just a few hours that quite a few potential purchasers may conclude, with seemingly little of the juicier content not already in the public domain, that there is not much point in parting with £20 to buy the book.
Perhaps that will work to Roy Keane's advantage.
Buy KP: The Autobiography (Sphere) from Amazon
, Waterstones or WHSmith.
Buy Roy Keane: The Second Half (W&N) from Amazon
, Waterstones or WHSmith.
Home
If there is one person who could trump Keano for headline-making revelations, then it is KP.
Pietersen's first major pre-publication interview appeared in the Daily Telegraph on Monday, prompting just about every national newspaper to clear their pages for the inevitable reaction.
The Times have exclusive extracts to the Keane biography, The Second Half, which is ghosted, interestingly, by the Booker prize-winning Irish novelist Roddy Doyle, and give them due prominence.
Elsewhere, however, he barely gets a look-in as cricket correspondents and chief sports writers get to grips with KP's revelations and the fall-out, which has already reached levels unprecedented in the long history of cricket books.
Keane was helped when a Tesco store in Greater Manchester inadvertently -- or so we are to believe -- put The Second Half on their shelves three days early, enabling the contents quickly to find their way into the media.
But next to Pietersen's version of the events that led to his acrimonious parting of the ways with England's cricket team, there is a danger that none of Keane's revelations, quite a few of which cover old ground anyway, will seem that exciting.
In short, a book that would have sold itself had it appeared on October 9 last year, next year or in any other year, in all probability, will need an extra push.
Meanwhile, Pietersen's attacks on Andy Flower, on Matt Prior, on England's supposedly bullying bowlers, his opinions on Andrew Strauss, Alastair Cook, Peter Moores and Paul Downton -- all make compelling reading.
Ironically, so much has been revealed and so much comment passed in just a few hours that quite a few potential purchasers may conclude, with seemingly little of the juicier content not already in the public domain, that there is not much point in parting with £20 to buy the book.
Perhaps that will work to Roy Keane's advantage.
Buy KP: The Autobiography (Sphere) from Amazon
, Waterstones or WHSmith.Buy Roy Keane: The Second Half (W&N) from Amazon
, Waterstones or WHSmith.Home
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