The author recounts some of the autobiographies of Indian cricketers that have made compelling reading over the years besides giving a new dimension to India’s cricket writings.
In the midst of the on-going, electrifying IPL 2020 matches, the loyal army of Indian cricket lovers are rallying solidly behind some of superb performances with euphoria thereby once again reaffirming their undiminished, eternal passion for cricket - the real religion - that binds the teeming millions of Indians.
Interestingly, even a cursory look at the treasure of English literature familiarises a casual reader with a host of brilliant writings by some distinguished writers who have got their names carved alongside the immortal litterateurs of the world. The crowning example of such a celebrated writer is Sir Neville Cardus who was knighted for his outstanding writings on cricket and music. Till late 1970s, one of the prose pieces of Cardus used to be included in the syllabus of an English Honours course.
The high quality of writings of the likes of RK Narayan, Mulk Raj Anand and a galaxy of writers have resulted in enriching the English literature of India and its quality has gone up manifold - a fact acknowledged unanimously by the highly respected English literary critics across the world. As a corollary to such healthy development in the literary scene, the writings on cricket both by the players themselves and writers of the stature of Dicky Rutnagar, Dom Mores, Raju Bharatan, Dr Ramchandra Guha, Partab Ramchand etc have contributed in the flourishing of Indian cricket literature as well.
“Style is the man,” goes the saying. Mansur Ali Khan Pataudi’s autobiographical book titled, ‘Tiger’s Tale’, written in a gripping but cryptic style, holds a mirror to the cricket situation prevalent during the period in its entirety coupled with the descriptions of some of the grueling Indian encounters against some of its formidable oppositions like England and Australia. His book brings to fore the hallmarks of his towering personality.
True to his nature, Pataudi did not mention much of his own exploits in batting but highly praised some of his other test match colleagues. As a bright student of Oxford, Tiger’s Tale, written in the late 1960s, contains Pataudi’s passing observations on the contemporary socio-economic conditions as well in the context of cricket, making the book a rather interesting read.
Ajit Wadekar had shot to prominence in 1971 when the Indian team under his captainship went on to beat West Indies and England for the first time in their own home grounds and won the test rubber thereby making the Indian cricket fans ecstatic and euphoric. Cricket overnight became a game of the masses coming out of the clutches of the rich and upper-middle class. Ajit Wadekar took advantage of his enormous celebrity status and brought out his autobiography titled, ‘My Cricketing Years.’ The book, coming in the wake of his successive victories, was an instant success and attracted many readers who were otherwise uninitiated to cricket. However, the book is also supplemented with the acknowledgment, “as told to Mr. KN Prabhu.”
The sophisticated and articulate maestro, Sunil Gavaskar, with his St. Xavier’s Mumbai background, has written a number of books, the most noteworthy being his immensely popular autobiography, “Sunny Days.” The book had sold like hotcakes. Gavaskar’s enviable command over the language, his magnificent presentation of various happenings - both on and off the field - captivates a reader instantaneously and is an ‘unputdownable’ book. Widely acclaimed by critics, the book had courted controversy as well especially as Gavaskar has been unkind to the West Indies supporters whom he termed “uncivilised and fit to remain in Jungles!” Needless to say, such unpalatable comments were strongly condemned not only by the West Indians but in India as well. Gavaskar went on to write “One Day Wonders” thereafter which gives a detailed account on how India became champion in Australia in the World Championship of Cricket (WCC) limited over tournament organised by the Australian Cricket Board in the year 1985 in which all the test playing countries had participated. Gavaskar was the Indian captain in this tournament.
‘Runs and Ruins’ is the third book written by the legendary cricketer which again had created a ruckus because of his disparaging comments on many issues which include, among others, his views on the ‘whims and fancies’ of Indian selectors! All of Gavaskar’s books make fantastic reading.
Kapil Dev has two books to his credit. His first publication, ‘By God’s Decree’, narrates his rise from a humble background to achieve his dream of playing for India. Interestingly, the maestro saw the first test live when he himself had played his first test at Faisalabad in Pakistan. His other book titled, ‘Cricket, My Style’ also expresses his resentment against Sunil Gavaskar for his ‘lack of positive attitude and aggression.’ Further, Kapil gives vent to his feelings against ‘Little Master’ Sunil Gavaskar for dropping him from the Kolkata test against England in 1984. Kapil’s books reveal his humility and modesty despite his enviable achievements. Critics however point out that the books were ‘ghost written.’
Sachin Tendulkar’s autobiography, ‘Playing It My Way’ is devoid of ornamental stylistics. True to the characteristics of the ‘Master Blaster’, he expressed uninhibitedly his emotions and experiences in a candid manner the same way he played his game all through his illustrious career bereft of any controversy. Tendulkar has expressed his resentment against some of the highhanded actions of Greg Chappell during his tenure as a coach of the Indian cricket team.
Interestingly, the autobiographies of Saurav Ganguly and VVS Laxman titled, ‘A Century Is Not Enough’ and ‘281 and Beyond’ respectively failed to have the desired impact on readers.
Notwithstanding the impact of technology, autobiographies by sports celebrities continue to inspire a large spectrum of readers across the world justifying the good old saying, ‘The pen is mightier than sword.’
(The author is a retired civil servant. The views expressed in the article are his own.)
