Fast-paced tale of a ‘Very Very Special’ cricketer
Throughout his cricketing career, VVS Laxman, aka ‘Lax’ or ‘Lachi’ to his teammates, says he has been asked to prove himself over and over again to find a place in the national side. If he didn’t perform well in a Test, he points out that he was promptly dropped for the next series. And these kind of episodes, he says, were one too many in his 16-year contribution to the Indian side.
Despite the ‘unfairness’ of the situation, he kept up hope and went on to amass 281, the highest individual score by any Indian in Test cricket (as of 2001) against Australia at Eden Gardens in Kolkata. Never the one to care about personal milestones, Laxman says he always placed the team’s goals before individual aspirations.
‘281 and Beyond’ is the story of how VVS Laxman rose from his humble beginnings in Hyderabad to etch a name for himself among the cricketing greats of the world. During his early teens, he counts the support of his parents, and more importantly, that of his maternal uncle who stood by him and believed he had the potential to play for India.
The author shares his moments of self-doubt, between choosing cricket and medicine. He finally decided to give himself five years to pursue his dream, failing which he resolved to study MBBS and become a doctor.
In a detailed account, Laxman relives the reader through his years playing for state-level teams, until finally receiving the Test cap for India from his idol, Md. Azharuddin. He also gives a blow-by-blow description of all the matches he took part in, of scoring good and getting out cheaply, of being a ‘non-regular’ opener, the physical injuries on field, and more. Laxman also informs the reader of his and the team’s differences with coach Greg Chappell, a few unsavoury incidents between them, etc. Among other on-field and off-the-field happenings, the ‘Monkeygate’ issue between Andrew Symonds and Harbhajan Singh, enacting ‘Singh Is King’ skit at a resort, etc., his experiences playing with Virender Sehwag, Rahul Dravid, Sachin Tendulkar and Sourav Ganguly are also narrated.
A chapter is also devoted to his ‘best partnership’ with Sailaja, his wife. How they met and married, the way she supported him all through his difficult times finds a prominent mention. Laxman had stayed clear of controversies throughout his career, but ironically, found himself in one on the day of his retirement, between him and MS Dhoni. Post retiring from international cricket in 2012, Laxman says he thought of pursuing MBBS, but backed down after realising the commitment needed and the family time he would be missing out on.
All in all, ‘281 and Beyond’ is an engrossing tale of the exploits, trials and tribulations of one of the finest cricketers of our times. Pages: 309 Price: `699 Publisher: Westland Sport
— Shyam Yadagiri
shyam@newindianexpress.com
@shyamyadagiri