This year certainly has been eventful in the world of sport. Arguably the greatest club manager in world football called it a day, cricket's finest batsman took off his pads forever, new stars were born, others faded into oblivion. And 2013 will also certainly be remembered for the unprecedented number of sport books released during the year.
A few books on Sachin Tendulkar were published to coincide with the batsman's retirement. Similarly, the retirement of Alex Ferguson, the celebrated manager of Manchester United, saw a couple of books on the Scotsman, including his autobiography. Even Unmukt Chand - yes, the u-19 or was it the u-17 prodigy? -published a book based on his diaries. We suggest five sports books that should make for great reading for sport fans and even for those with a passing interest in sports.
FEAR AND LOATHING IN LA LIGA by Sid Lowe
More From This Section
Lowe has done meticulous research, conducted hundreds of interviews and Fear and Loathing is perhaps the finest football book to have come out in the last few years. What makes the book a fascinating read is Lowe's insights which are accentuated by some brilliant anecdotes. The narrative is expansive and covers every important chapter in the history of both the clubs. It is Lowe's writing that ensures that the book flows naturally and retains the essence of detailing.
Not that Lowe's book will make the loathing among the two clubs any less but what it does is help you understand is where the two clubs come from, where the animus originated and why the two need each other to survive.
THE MASTER LASTER by Sumit Chakraverty
While the world went crazy and shed copious tears over Sachin Tendulkar's retirement, there was one man who came out with a book which wasn't too kind to the little master. Journalist and cricket columnist Sumit Chakraverty's book has as its subject everything that they don't tell you about Tendulkar. One could have dismissed it as an attempt to cash in on the retirement frenzy, if it hadn't raised certain valid points.
Chakraverty isn't fully critical of Tendulkar - who can actually be? - and praises him generously but says loud and clear what many fans uttered under their breath. Did Tendulkar play for records? Did centuries matter to him more than victories? Was he consumed, at least in the latter years, by the necessity to create individual milestones?
There seems to be an attitude in cricket fans about not questioning their holy cows and the bovines don't come bigger than Tendulkar. Chakraverty's effort should be lauded because he asks questions that should have been raised more often during the legendary batsman's career.
AT THE CLOSE OF PLAY by Ricky Ponting
Ricky Ponting was a swashbuckling batsman and one of modern-day cricket's true greats . In his biography, the former Australian cricket captain is in superb form as well. He is candid about most things and doesn't hold back, whether it is about Monkeygate, his captaincy or his relations with his team-mates. A lot of Australian cricketers over the years have penned their memoirs, but barring Glenn McGrath's book, Line and Strength, none is as honest and candid as Ponting's.
Ponting comes down hard on Cricket Australia for being complacent about the lack of talent coming through the ranks. He criticises Tendulkar for his role in the infamous racist allegations against Harbhajan Singh. "The Indians got him off the hook when they, of all people, should have been treating the matter of racial vilification with the utmost seriousness," he writes of the incident. He is also critical of the current Australia captain, Michael Clarke, and says he had doubts about Clarke being good enough to be the team captain. Ponting has been accused of washing dirty linen in public but that's what separates his book from the rest. A lot of cricketers, even after retirement, are afraid of ruffling feathers and aren't honest in their assessment about their careers. Ponting, much to his credit, delivers an honest, refreshing account of a top cricketer's life.
ALEX FERGUSON: MY AUTOBIOGRAPHY
Apart from the unimaginative title, there's very little to criticise about Ferguson's book. Manchester United's long-serving and highly decorated manager lets football fans delve into his side of the story. Ferguson, a tough Scot, was never known to mince words and he follows the same approach in his book. It's not a detailed biography - for that one should read his brilliant first book, Managing My Life -but Ferguson talks about various important episodes and people that shaped his later years as manager at Old Trafford. There are chapters on Roy Keane (the inspirational United skipper with whom Ferguson had a fallout), Liverpool (United's bitter rivals; Ferguson calls them "a great tradition"), Cristiano Ronaldo (the best player Ferguson said he ever managed) and the Class of '92 (a talented bunch of players nurtured by the club's youth system who came through under Ferguson).
The manager talks at length - in almost every chapter - about how being in control at a club of United's stature was of the essence. Ferguson was the manager of United for almost 27 years and he has ample information that should be a must-read for managers across the world - like how he handled the media and the plethora of stars at his disposal. Such was Ferguson's influence that even Tony Blair consulted him on several issues - not directly, of course. An engrossing read for anyone who wants to understand how one deals with great expectations in the world of football.
SEVEN DEADLY SINS: MY PURSUIT OF LANCE ARMSTRONG By David Walsh
Lance Armstrong's story is remarkable and shocking at many different levels. No one has followed the story better than journalist David Walsh who captures his journey in this excellent book. It's an account of how a few journalists went out to expose the bane of doping in cycling.
Walsh was one of the few journalists who doubted the Armstrong success story and suspected that something was terribly wrong. He pursued, or rather as he says "lived with the story", for almost 12 years before he was vindicated. It is a fascinating account of one of the most intriguing sports stories of the last few decades. The book, of course, paints Armstrong as a villain, detailing how the cyclist lied, bullied and had a terrible attitude towards fellow riders. It does seem a bit hurriedly written though, and yet it is a great story about the deceit of a revered athlete and the doggedness of a journalist.
