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Playing It My Way: My Autobiography

by Sachin Tendulkar , Boria Majumdar (Contributor)

3.68 of 5 stars 3.68 · rating details · 2,536 ratings · 334 reviews

"I’m delighted that my autobiography #PlayingitMyWay will be published on November 6, this year.

I knew that agreeing to write my story would need me to be completely honest, as that’s the way I have always played the game. It would require talking about a number of aspects I have not shared in public before.

So here I am, at the end of my final innings, having taken that ...more

Hardcover , 486 pages

Published November 6th 2014 by Hachette

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Nov 10, 2014 Hajarath Prasad Abburu rated it 5 of 5 stars

There was cricket before you. And there will be cricket after you. But cricket will never be the same without you.

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Nov 17, 2014 Santhosh rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This book is not for the passionate Sachin fan, because most of them would themselves be able to write about 90% of the book. I know I could.

All the Tendulkar moments are there: the Ranji centuries, the Waqar bouncer, the maiden century, the Australia tours, opening in ODIs, the world cups, the five-wicket hauls, the Sharjah twins, the Chennai 136, Sydney 241, Multan, the Gwalior 200, the umpiring howlers, the partnerships, the sixes and the triumphs. As are the stories and anecdotes: multiple This book is not for the passionate Sachin fan, because most of them would themselves be able to write about 90% of the book. I know I could.

All the Tendulkar moments are there: the Ranji centuries, the Waqar bouncer, the maiden century, the Australia tours, opening in ODIs, the world cups, the five-wicket hauls, the Sharjah twins, the Chennai 136, Sydney 241, Multan, the Gwalior 200, the umpiring howlers, the partnerships, the sixes and the triumphs. As are the stories and anecdotes: multiple matches under Achrekar Sir, staying at his uncle's, the Kambli partnership, wearing disguises to watch a movie, losing his father, love of food, the captaincy, the injuries, crying his heart out at every major loss.

And very little else.

A good (auto)biography or memoir is one that has either fantastic new content that breaks fresh ground or is presented in an eminently captivating manner. This, though, fails on both counts, especially so in the writing which is just lazy and simplistic from Boris Majumdar. Remember how Sachin so maddeningly used to get dismissed against the Cronjes and Razzaqs with that half prod outside off stump? Well, this is in the same vein: a half-hearted frustrating attempt. Agreed that Sachin's is a life that's been scrutinised and catalogued scores of times, making it difficult to actually come up with fresh anecdotes and stories. However, there was more than ample scope for getting into the mind of the greatest of champions, one who had risen from schoolboy cricketer to a demigod and stayed there for a quarter of a century. There's definitely a story there!

The subject couldn't have been more interesting, to put it mildly. Forget living legends, Sachin was a playing legend for two thirds of his career. His stories had already passed into myth and legend while he was still learning his craft. He was Don freakin' Bradman's Bonzer. The most celebrated, worshipped, adored, complete, competitive, lasting cricketer and phenomenon of our times is a story crying out loud to be printed. As a biographer, this was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

For a subject not exactly renowned for being articulate and forthcoming, the co-writer's role assumes all the more importance. To extract as much as possible, slowly and steadily, drip by golden drip adding up, probing, questioning, dissecting, persuading, cajoling, coaxing. Definitely not sitting across him and asking him to jot down whatever he remembers about the major series and tournaments, which is what this feels like. This was crying out for Walter Isaacson, not Boria Majumdar.

This could have been a contemporary analysis of modern cricket. Or a peep-hole into the minds of one of the deepest thinkers of the game, someone who loved and worshipped at the game's altar as much as he conquered all that he surveyed. Or a masterclass on run-making and batting techniques and adjustments. Or how he dealt with being public property for all these years. Or a recollection of the dressing room and Team India over three decades of triumphs, losses, fun and heartbreak. Not a series of match reports and stilted retelling of stale anecdotes.

There are tantalising glimpses, though, of what the book could have been: mastering the back-foot punch to counter the Australian pacers on the 1991-92 tour, his reading of Murali's doosra, changing his stance to duck Allan Donald's bouncers during the 1997 tour, playing with tissues in his underwear due to a bad stomach during his 97 against Sri Lanka in WC 2003, the extent and number of injuries he carried in the second half of his long career, a couple of pages on the flip side of fame and how it affects the family, a relatively more personal account of winding down and retirement.

One takeaway is, reading between the lines as a whole, a little better understanding about his character - obsessed about high performance and standards, somewhat self-centred in his view, trying too hard to justify himself. Or maybe I felt that because of the high number of "I"s in the book. It would be interesting to research on the self-centredness of the top achievers; beyond the Viv swagger and the Pietersen brashness, most seem to cater to W.G. Grace's " They came to see me bat not you bowl ". Everything and everyone, including their own teammates, is but a 'support' system, carrying on from when everyone had tried to nurture their prodigious talents when a child. An absolute belief in one's superiority, to be able to alter perceptive reality. Here, for instance, Sachin is always dismissed by a ball that didn't swing as much as expected (never that he misread the swing), or gets out to the only ball that swung or spun in the entire match. There is no assumed hesitation in stating that he could contribute the best when opening because he felt most comfortable there.

The book overall is quite similar to Gavaskar's Sunny Days , which was again an underwhelming work on its own right. While especially for sportsmen, whose careers and lives are of interest only to the generation that has watched them (would you buy the autobiography of Viv Richards or Don Bradman today?), there's the urgency to get their memoirs onto the shop shelves, the definitive, incisive story of Sachin's journey is still waiting to be written.

So, this is not for Sachin fans, unless it's taken as a walk down memory lane. ...more

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Nov 08, 2014 Pushkar rated it 3 of 5 stars

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. Jumped on to this one in anticipation of knowing so many secrets of Indian cricket which the man has kept close for years.

However, the writing seems more honest and capturing when it's not about cricket; mostly when it is about Sachin's family. When it's about his wife and his children, one can almost feel like he is describing it all with a shy smile. He has been really lucky to have the support of his family members (even those in the extended family), friends and coach. If one ever had a dou Jumped on to this one in anticipation of knowing so many secrets of Indian cricket which the man has kept close for years.

However, the writing seems more honest and capturing when it's not about cricket; mostly when it is about Sachin's family. When it's about his wife and his children, one can almost feel like he is describing it all with a shy smile. He has been really lucky to have the support of his family members (even those in the extended family), friends and coach. If one ever had a doubt about whether he deserved to receive the accolades that he did, the description of his hard work as a kid is good enough to quell such a doubt.

The book does a great job at providing cricketing insights too. Esp. how he read the wicket, the position of thumb while reading Murali, and so on. The behind-the-scenes action is amusing and even funny at times (though very less of it has remained unheard thanks to the man's more and more interviews). The funniest bit was his talk with Ganguly about playing off Flintoff. It was surprising to read that even Sachin gave it back to the bowlers/fielders and not just with his bat.

Didn't quite like the format of the book. Are all sportsperson autobiographies penned out going from game-to-game? While it brought back memories of the time when I followed cricket more closely, I was *whispers* bored to read the performances of all the main contributors to a match. It was as if I was reading newspaper reports (what with dates and all).

He has done a nice (for him) but unexciting (for readers) job of steering clear from the controversies. Like he mentions the 2000 SA in India series match-fixing but doesn't talk about it beyond a paragraph. It would have been nice to read how he felt when Azhar was banned, if he had any inkling about corruption as confessed by Cronje and if he was ever approached.

Apart from all the nice things, I felt that the book brings forth a bit of Sachin's selfcentredness that was rather unknown to me. Instances in question being when he talked to Nasseer Hussain about his average and scores despite Giles's negative line, how much the 194 declaration affected him (didn't he say it was okay back then?), how much it mattered to him to score a hundred (didn't he say he just enjoys his cricket and milestones come and go?) and how Shoaib should've moved out & Wasim should've withdrawn the appeal in Eden Gardens (didn't he say then that it was part of the game?) May be I assumed the guy to be super-perfect.

The last bit was ever so emotional. It was heartening to feel how his body kept giving him more and more signals that it's time to say goodbye to the game. It's almost as if he didn't feel any pain physically but was only concerned about how quickly he returned to the field.

The best part about the book was definitely the first few lines in which he talks about his father's words about how he'd play cricket for less than half of his life and it'd please him more if people remember him as a good human being than a great cricketer. Great words indeed. ...more

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Nov 08, 2014 Tina rated it 5 of 5 stars

I have never found myself in tears after finishing a book. But Playing it My Way did bring back all the memories all the affection I had felt for this man ever since 1992 - that's when I started watching cricket. I have worshipped him from that time as a hero as a great player as a great human being and as a God. By the end of this book it only makes me feel proud of my idol my hero. A must read for every one. You will be touched with his humbleness humility and the honesty with which the book h ...more

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Dec 20, 2014 Nayema Lipi rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: biography

Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar is not only a great cricketer, but also a great man.
The book is nicely written, describing his cricket life and also his personal life. He described every matches, he played in his 24 years cricket career.He has told in this book about his childhood,how he started playing cricket,how he passed his hard times, how he handled a particular Bowler as a batsman and a particular batsman as a bowler, some memorable incidents in cricket. How he fought to come back in his every i ...more

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Nabila Tabassum Chowdhury আমারটা সফট কপি। তবু ছবি আছে এবং কালার। হুম ছবি গুলো দেখে ফেলেছি। ফাইনাল পরীকষা শেষ এখন তাড়াতাড়ি পড়ে ফেলবো। :)

লরড অব দযা রিং বইটা কেন যেন আমার কখনোই প ...more
Dec 23, 2014 12:27AM

Nayema Lipi কপালগুণে লরড অফ দা রিংসএর একটা অরিজিনাল কপি পেয়েছি। :D
তিনটা একসাথে হলেও পড়তে বেশি কষট হয় না। :P ...more
Dec 25, 2014 09:56PM

Nov 11, 2014 shashank rated it 1 of 5 stars

Shelves: bios-and-auto-bios , indian-authors

A big disappointment,apart from few anecdotes almost everything is yawn-inducing.I was expecting more substance and fewer scorecards .Hardly anything is said about the crisis of match -fixing despite sachin having ringside seat in indian cricket .This book needed more time,thoght and a much better ghost-writer.What could've been a contemporary analysis of modern cricket has been reduced to a dumbed down 'eulogy ' to milk the cash cow that Sachin's name is .Unfortunate .

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Dec 31, 2014 Saurabh rated it 2 of 5 stars

Skimmed through this book. Skimmed because reading it all is impossible. The obsession with numbers and personal milestones is palpable and makes for boring reading. The title is telling.

Devotes entire chapters to the hundredth hundred, even having a Deewar like monologue with God when he does it (yes he is literally mad at God for making him wait so long for a made up statistic). Takes no blame for having lost India the match and series on account of his selfish play. Instead blames people for Skimmed through this book. Skimmed because reading it all is impossible. The obsession with numbers and personal milestones is palpable and makes for boring reading. The title is telling.

Devotes entire chapters to the hundredth hundred, even having a Deewar like monologue with God when he does it (yes he is literally mad at God for making him wait so long for a made up statistic). Takes no blame for having lost India the match and series on account of his selfish play. Instead blames people for thinking so. And blames the bowlers by pointing to another match saying we restricted a better team to fewer runs, promptly forgetting that we scored more against them too (Sachin made 6). Childish as hell.

Seems petulant about poor decisions yet I didnt see one admission of a wrong decision going his way. Says the "shoulder before wicket" would never have gone on to hit stumps: has he not seen the replay , or does he truly put himself above the truth?

Says nothing controversial about match fixing etc, instead wants us to know what food he likes.

Says nothing about BCCI arranging an easy series for his retirement, instead says he had to "rethink his plans" because BCCI did so.

Tends to blame other people for his mistakes (scorer added extras to his score; Imran's field position made him drop Kapil in a charity match) and plays up his sacrifices (ran himself out for Azhar, played with fever etc).

The worst thing in the book is him blaming Dravid for the 194 declaration by saying Dravid played for himself in a different match and cost India a match and series win. Firstly, no one ever has called Dravid selfish, he is one of the most selfless players to have ever played the game. Secondly, he did not complete his century in that match, and has never made this an issue: that's because he is Dravid, not Sachin. Thirdly, he wasnt the captain and it was not his decision to declare. Fourthly, he was scoring faster than Tendulkar. Fifthly, this didnt cost India the match because we had the Aussies 6 down at the end, a far cry from a win. This is such a complete misrepresentation of the facts by Sachin, that it is – no, not laughable – pitiable .

Yes, that's basically the takeaway from this book. For one who has gotten so much by playing a game well, Sachin should be happier .
...more

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Nov 07, 2014 Khamneithang Vaiphei rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: reviews

Playing It My Way: My Autobiography by Sachin Tendulkar, and co-authored by renowned cricket historian and media personality Boria Majumdar is the much-awaited official autobiography of cricket’s batting icon Sachin Tendulkar. Fans of the master-blaster are treated to delightful strokes of not the bat but the pen as the batting legend discussed all aspects of his life that have not been shared previously.

Beginning with his childhood, the memoir is a journey through the life of Sachin through twe ...more

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Dec 14, 2014 Aseem rated it 4 of 5 stars

Read with low expectations n you will love it!
it is not for the ones who were expecting huge revelations by Sachin in his autobiography.. but isnt it wrong to expect out of sachin who has always maintained a safe distance from the controversies..? It is for true Sachin fans who anyways remember Sachin's achievements n disappointments but would cherish them again coming straight from the master himself..
By the time I finished..I was as choked as I was when I heard his farewell speech for the firs ...more

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Dec 23, 2014 Vandita Verma rated it 3 of 5 stars

No doubt Sachin is one the greatest batsman the country has but the book disappointed in many ways..first of all match by match summary made it look like a report ..with no mention of anything interesting other than how many runs were made to who was playing which country and stuff like that ... secondly the narrative style is absolutely boring .. at one point of time it feels you have to just skip pages to reach something that would give an insight to cricket world... the use of I is more than ...more

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Nov 16, 2014 Aniket Sharma rated it 4 of 5 stars

The four star rating is pretty much solely due to that it is a Sachin book by Sachin Himself. The book as such reads like a Journal - mostly a running commentary of matches (although important, key matches) and gets monotonous after a while. That is something, since all the matches mentioned are very key matches in Sachin's career and for any fan of Indian cricket, they hold considerable interest.

Sachin's relations within his family, especially with his kids, with teammates, and the food He had ...more

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Nov 16, 2014 Shahine Ardeshir rated it 4 of 5 stars

I have to admit huge personal bias upfront: I grew up watching Sachin Tendulkar play cricket, and have tremendous respect for the way he's conducted himself as a player on the field and as a person off it. So I picked up this book expecting to love it.

And I wasn't disappointed!

Many autobiographies tend to be rather indulgent. Suddenly, there are pages upon pages describing personal details that are neither interesting nor relevant as such, some of which are better reserved for a therapy session I have to admit huge personal bias upfront: I grew up watching Sachin Tendulkar play cricket, and have tremendous respect for the way he's conducted himself as a player on the field and as a person off it. So I picked up this book expecting to love it.

And I wasn't disappointed!

Many autobiographies tend to be rather indulgent. Suddenly, there are pages upon pages describing personal details that are neither interesting nor relevant as such, some of which are better reserved for a therapy session. Refreshingly, Tendulkar's starts at a comfortable clip, where he managed to remain personal without being overly emotional, telling us snippets of his childhood pertinent to setting the context for his career ahead, but not wandering too far off track. As a result, while the language remained simple and to the point, the content was never dull, and the story kept moving. I particularly enjoyed the section on when he was an up-and-coming young cricketer. It was heartening to realise that even for someone of Tendulkar's skill, it was persistence, discipline and practice that sculpted him into who he is today.

The biggest treat of all, though, was to read about the many matches I have seen, that I still remember, being told from out there in the middle. As a reader, you learn about how he approached a particular innings, what went through his mind when he took guard against some of the greatest bowlers in the world, how satisfying particular knocks were - it's like a behind-the-scenes look at some of my favourite cricket, and was an absolute pleasure to read. I found myself savouring every page, and was sorely disappointed when it ended.

All in the all, the tenor and pitch of the book seems the same as the man: Humble, simple and extremely enjoyable. An absolute must-read if you're a fan of Indian cricket and the little master. ...more

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Nov 10, 2014 Satheesh Kumar rated it 5 of 5 stars

Honest and From the heart

The best thing about this book is the complete frankness with which the entire thing is written. For a Sachin fan who is used to politically correct statements from the great man throughout his entire career, it is a pleasant surprise, and it makes for a really entertaining read.
At the beginning of the book Sachin says " I knew that if I agreed to write my story, I would have to be completely honest ". And that is exactly what he's done in the book. He calls a spade a spad ...more

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Nov 22, 2014 Shreyas rated it 3 of 5 stars

Growing up with this legend, seeing his play, anticipating every stroke of his and his eventual turn of importance to Indian cricket is immeasurable. A gifted legend to the sport in every possible way and inspiration to millions over.

However, the book slightly disappoints as it bisects the way his career flourished. Family importance and support is important but it is a bit too highlighted. The way he achieved it via his own language and cricket language as advice would have been more effective ...more

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Nov 14, 2014 Subadesh rated it 3 of 5 stars

High on nostalgia.
But has only around 50 pages of fascinating stuff that we don't know already. Way too many pedestrian match summaries (like Gavaskar's Sunny Days). Lousy descriptions of people. Writing style amateurish and leaves a lot to be desired - really wish someone like Bhogle had co-authored.
Still a page turner, like a patchy Sachin innings where we hang on to his every move no matter what - coz we can't have enough of him. Ever.
Over to YouTube now :)

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Mar 16, 2015 Bharath Ramakrishnan rated it 3 of 5 stars

If you are Sachin Tendulkar fan as indeed most of us are - would of course, suggest this as a book to be read. It has good matter on his early playing days and remarkable commitment to the game over a remarkable and long career. There are details on virtually all major tournaments and big knocks. There are many touching passages when Sachin talks about his family, his grief at his father's demise, well wishes of family and friends, wife Anjali's sacrifices to ensure he can concentrate on his car ...more

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Jan 09, 2015 Divya rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2015 , bio-autobiography , indian , memoir

As a fairly crazy Tendulkar fan, I'd been meaning to read this book for a while but was slightly concerned about the size of the book as well as the lukewarm reviews I'd been seeing.

Turns out that the concerns were not misplaced. While I loved Sachin's fairly straightforward first-person intimate style of writing, it was interesting for about the first 50-100 pages where he spoke about his childhood and growing up and learning. What really started to bug me a little though, pretty soon, was his As a fairly crazy Tendulkar fan, I'd been meaning to read this book for a while but was slightly concerned about the size of the book as well as the lukewarm reviews I'd been seeing.

Turns out that the concerns were not misplaced. While I loved Sachin's fairly straightforward first-person intimate style of writing, it was interesting for about the first 50-100 pages where he spoke about his childhood and growing up and learning. What really started to bug me a little though, pretty soon, was his constant admissions of "embarrassment" when he admitted to the slightest weakness and personal details though it was mostly because of the repetitiveness of that statement - Sachin is that way in real life and you forgive him easily for debut author mistakes and diplomacy.

Its interesting to see his insights on joining the Indian national team as a 16 year old but he doesn't go too deep into introspection apart from a few incident recollections of emotions / things he wanted to touch on /clarify. This sets the tone for the rest of the book where he touches on the big matches and his role in them and much lesser than fans would actually like on what went on behind the scenes even in his own head. The book has a great record of all his statistics and scores, but during reading you tend to skip them if you want to read it as a story. The other part is that once you read match after match after match, you get a little tired unless you are watching the matches side by side, which may be a great future idea.

As a story itself I really wish it was organized a little more about his personal growth and life, but there's only so much of it. The parts that really felt intimate and a good look into the inner Sachin were his initial days with Anjali and later his feelings about captaincy. The latter especially adds a lot of color into his match stories but almost functions more as a clarification for some of the media furore over his performance. I almost felt like, except for some sections in the book, the rest of the book shouldn't be read at one go, but rather in sections so you don't feel the monotony. (Admittedly, I read the book in one day - a slightly obsessive streak about finishing books that I'm going through - a January resolution / post holiday thing I think - which may have contributed to this feeling)

I really liked the emotional portions of the almost end portions of the book where he talks about his 100th ton and feelings of retirement where he talks about his thoughts before each match. In some ways I think I, like a lot of other people, was looking for the behind scenes, not just cricket match, version of Tendulkar.

What really surprised me was the sheer number of injuries and treatment that went into the career of a cricketer and what Sachin needed to go through to play constantly for 24 years. More reflections on how this can be avoided, taken into consideration, what infrastructure / facilities are needed would again have taken this beyond a diary to the insights of one of the most prominent sportsmen.

The other thing I would have loved to see was the emergence of Tendulkars's, the business and the motivation behind it and the post retirement phase or at least hints of it would have been great.

I realize that this review has unfortunately been more about what else could have been there in the book rather than whats there, but that by itself tells me how I felt after reading close to a 1000 pages by Sachin. ...more

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Jan 17, 2015 Salil Kanitkar rated it 3 of 5 stars

Sachin's career is phenomenally great - but the book - not so much.

There are too many statistics and match summaries.
There were a few chapters I literally felt goosebumps while reading - but that was probably because I could picture the match and how it all went down rather than the prose.
All in all very unimaginative prose and a factual book. Honestly, this is more like a textbook or a Wikipedia page.

The book does not mention or just barely skims through the "controversial" aspects that I would ...more

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Mar 29, 2015 Chandar rated it 5 of 5 stars

Must read for the cricket fan! All Indian cricket fans have followed Sachin Tendulkar's cricket over the past half century. I distinctly remember that Pakistan debut series especially the match where Sachin took on Abdul Qadir after his "hamko maarke dikhao" taunt. I've followed Sachin's career along the hills and vales (more hills and less vales, but hills are only possible because of the vales).

From my perspective, the book offers a lot of insights into those hills and vales; and talks through ...more

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Nov 11, 2014 Mithraa Sriraman rated it 3 of 5 stars

Disappointed. Pales in comparison to out of my comfort zone.

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Nov 12, 2014 Deepak Gopalakrishnan rated it 4 of 5 stars

Sachin's autobiography, probably the most anticipated book in India in the last few years, is not groundbreaking, it's not overly controversial and doesn't tell us anything new about the legend who has been the subject of so much media exposure in the last two decades.

Despite that, PIMW is a lovely read. It's not so much an autobiography as much as a first person chronology of his career. Which by itself is fascinating, because we've heard these stories so many times before, it's interesting to Sachin's autobiography, probably the most anticipated book in India in the last few years, is not groundbreaking, it's not overly controversial and doesn't tell us anything new about the legend who has been the subject of so much media exposure in the last two decades.

Despite that, PIMW is a lovely read. It's not so much an autobiography as much as a first person chronology of his career. Which by itself is fascinating, because we've heard these stories so many times before, it's interesting to hear it coming from him.

The beginning of the book is the best part. His childhood, anecdotes, his feelings... It's a wonderful glimpse into how he felt about the game and really, how he was before he became a superstar.

The rest of the book trudges on, really, and if you're well-versed with Indian cricket over the last two years, you could either be bored or thoroughly entertained if you consider it a sort of rewind session.

His prose is not the greatest, of course, but we'll grant him that. We're not looking for literary brilliance here.

While he steers clear of some topics that we'd have liked him to voice an opinion on, like match fixing, he does launch into a total assault of former coach Greg Chappel, which one can't help but feel was am inclusion for pre-launch hype.

There are three pages of him ranting about the 194 declaration, which was a little surprising - and it's definitely fodder for those who say he plays for milestones.

Lots of stats, photos and names. Is it a masterpiece? Probably not. Is it disappointing? Definitely not. It's great to hear about everything from Bandra East to the Bharat Ratna in his voice.

Critics might say it's too linear and he speaks of nothing but cricket but this is a book by a man who, admittedly, has had little other than cricket in his life.

If you're a cricket fan, especially from India, I think you'd enjoy it, if you don't set your expectations too high. ...more

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Aug 30, 2015 Ashish rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: sports , read-2015 , autobiography

It not merely out of loyalty that I give this book 5 stars, it really is a worthy read for anyone who has followed him and also very young generation who want to understand why he has a special place in our hearts... Him talking about his favorite series which ironically turns out to be the one where he bowled wonderfully in the last match, and world cup 2003 with the trials and tribulations of nervousness and dehydration and real exhaustion and still finding the strength to carry on... I hoped ...more

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Feb 19, 2015 Benny rated it 3 of 5 stars

Took me an eternity to complete reading this book....it wasn't so much an autobiography, as it was a collection of match reports with a few personal recollections thrown in. SRT misses out on several opportunities to talk about the raging issues of his time; instead there are a lot of platitudes and self-congratulatory pats on the back. As a lifelong fan of the man, I was very disappointed with the book.

I blame Boria Majumdar.

That is not to say it is all bad. The best chapter of the book is towa ...more

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Dec 27, 2014 Vinodh rated it 3 of 5 stars

I will start with the positives - which are few. The chapter on Anjali is a delight. We see more behind the shy Sachin and it’s a breezy read more so because we don’t know much about it. The chapter on his captaincy has some good insights. His move to bowl Srinath on a ‘crumbling wicket’ when he had the options of 3 spinners against a strong SA team chasing 120 is a wonderful passage. So is his backing of Robin Singh, the move to shift Dravid and Ganguly to 3 and 5 respectively, the angst agains I will start with the positives - which are few. The chapter on Anjali is a delight. We see more behind the shy Sachin and it’s a breezy read more so because we don’t know much about it. The chapter on his captaincy has some good insights. His move to bowl Srinath on a ‘crumbling wicket’ when he had the options of 3 spinners against a strong SA team chasing 120 is a wonderful passage. So is his backing of Robin Singh, the move to shift Dravid and Ganguly to 3 and 5 respectively, the angst against the selection committee and a slight disgust against the BCCI on his sacking. His irritation towards Dravid for the Multan declaration, and the Greg Chappell (an easy target) episode seem honest. But apart from this, it almost becomes a pain to read and even more so if you remember the matches.

One thing clearly understood is Sachin’s obsession with centuries. So much so that on one occasion he has convinced Dhoni and Gary to postpone a declaration to let Yuvraj and Gambhir, both in the 70s, to get their centuries. 60 runs would mean at least half a session! They both got out without 100s but India won. Nevertheless, it is a recurring theme in his narrative when it comes to his centuries. The man was obsessed with the number - for the good or bad. And his determination to play even when half fit also comes across as annoying. His injuries are well documented but so is his half baked, hurried up comebacks which may not have been in the best interests of the team.

Most of the recollections about important matches read like a match report anybody could write by just reading the scorecard. You’d think there’d be more than a paragraph about the 1996 Eden Gardens semifinal but no. There’s hardly anything about Vinod Kambli (apart from the school time days) at all. And the 1996 tour of England, when Ganguly and Dravid entered the scene, gets one page - a page where Nasser Hussain is mentioned as skipper! 2007 world cup is covered in a page and the aftermath in two more pages. 2003 world cup final gets a page. There is hardly anything regarding the technicalities of the game from his point of view, very few anecdotes, random conversations with other players/family/friends which are hardly interesting, boring stray incidents on a tour and absolutely nothing controversial. Typical Tendulkar!

It is a very disappointing 'autobiography' which lacks a personal touch. It reads more like his career summarised by Boria Majumdar. But..it becomes an essential read simply because it is Sachin Tendulkar! ...more

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Dec 08, 2014 Vinay Badri rated it 3 of 5 stars

More of a recap of Sachin's career in numbers and shockingly blandly "ghost" written, it does not do justice at all to Sachin. Sachin remains as closed as he was when was playing. A few throwaway statements here and there, picking on easy targets, a fair sense of not being very positive towards Dravid and being as non-controversial as it can get. The compelling pieces are Sachin's struggle against his various injuries, the actual struggle against top bowlers have been given a short shrift. Sachi ...more

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Dec 07, 2014 Anoop K rated it 2 of 5 stars

I am deeply disappointed with the book after its promising start. The book is just a statement of facts about Sachin's life, and gives no insight into the person, his thought process, his trials and tribulations. I must admit that I never went beyond Sachin's first term as captaincy since the book had by then been reduced to a set of match records.

The book begins on a very strong note with the following quote from Sachin's father:

"‘Son, life is like a book. It has numerous chapters. It also ha I am deeply disappointed with the book after its promising start. The book is just a statement of facts about Sachin's life, and gives no insight into the person, his thought process, his trials and tribulations. I must admit that I never went beyond Sachin's first term as captaincy since the book had by then been reduced to a set of match records.

The book begins on a very strong note with the following quote from Sachin's father:

"‘Son, life is like a book. It has numerous chapters. It also has many a lesson in it. It is made up of a wide variety of experiences and resembles a pendulum where success and failure, joy and sorrow are merely extremes of the central reality. The lessons to be learnt from success and failure are equally important. More often than not, failure and sorrow are bigger teachers than success and happiness. You are a cricketer and sportsman. You are fortunate to be representing
your country, and that is a great honour. But never forget that this too is just another chapter in the book. Typically, let’s say a person lives for seventy or eighty years or so. How many years will you play sport? Twenty years; if you are very good, maybe even twenty-five years. Even by that yardstick, you will live the majority of your years outside the sphere of professional sport. This
clearly means that there is more to life than cricket. I am asking you, son, to keep a pleasant disposition and maintain a balanced nature. Do not allow success to breed arrogance in you. If you remain humble, people will give you love and respect even after you have finished with the game. As a parent, I would be happier hearing people say, “Sachin is a good human being” than “Sachin is a great cricketer” any day.’
"

Guess Sachin is not as gifted as his father with literary skills :) ...more

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Dec 01, 2014 Zeeshan rated it 2 of 5 stars

I was a little disappointed with this autobiography. There is hardly any insight shared about the cricketing world. It seems Sachin has very conveniently tried to avoid any topic which could lead him into any troubles with the powers to be(nothing on match/spot fixing, IPL saga, etc). Sachin has very carefully painted the same picture of himself which the public has in mind. He has shown himself to be the ideal human being, ideal family man, who can commit no mistake.

But still, on some pages, y ...more

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Nov 11, 2014 Gorab Jain rated it 4 of 5 stars

This is the Bible of cricket, written by none other than God himself. Must read for all the cricket lovers. Even for those who are not very familiar with the game of cricket, it is an inspiring story of how Sachin overcame all the failures and hardships before becoming an indispensable part of the Indian cricket team.
It is an in depth technical analysis of all the matches SRT has ever played, what was going through his mind, how strategies were formed and how by acute observation the course of ...more

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Aug 09, 2015 Sachin prabhu rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: favorites

Autobiography by SACHIN TENDULKAR aka GOD of cricket ! Its like a treat for fans!

I finished reading it in 6 hours. I couldn't stop reading. I really liked first few chapters. Book is inspiring from page 1 trust me! It starts with message by sachin's dad. I love it so much. Infact I liked first 5 chapters so much which is all about sachin's childhood, learning game,first match,first tour so on. After which book is monotonous with scorecards of some matches. I feel it could've been made better. Bo ...more

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Apr 20, 2015 Sankalp Shere rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

His master stroke!

There are some books you read cause you know they're good books, you don't know much about the author. And there are some other books that you know would be awesome no matter what!

It took me six months to finish this book, not because I couldn't read it faster; but because I wanted to savor every page I read. Not because of the flawless writing, but because who and what was the writing about.

Just like the movie 'boyhood'; this book grows on you! I could remember the places and ...more

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About Sachin Tendulkar

Bharat Ratna Sachin Tendulkar is a former Indian cricketer widely acknowledged as one of the greatest cricketers of all time.

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“If you remain humble, people will give you love and respect even after you have finished with the game. As a parent, I would be happier hearing people say, “Sachin is a good human being” than “Sachin is a great cricketer” any day.” — 7 likes

“Son, life is like a book. It has numerous chapters. It also has many a lesson in it. It is made up of a wide variety of experiences and resembles a pendulum where success and failure, joy and sorrow are merely extremes of the central reality. The lessons to be learnt from success and failure are equally important. More often than not, failure and sorrow are bigger teachers than success and happiness.” — 3 likes

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