Very, very special memoir

281 and beyond is a special book on a few counts: it presents Mr Laxman, mostly reticent during his playing days, and insufficiently articulate as a broadcaster, in a new light

281 and Beyond 
 

VVS Laxman with R Kaushik
 

Westland Sport, Rs 699, 309 pages







Cricket and statistics are inextricably linked. Any sport for that matter is about numbers, but this marriage is all the more rigid in the case of cricket. And that is why certain numbers just stick to certain cricketers — milestones etched in 24-carat gold that sometimes go on to define entire careers. With Chris Gayle, it will forever be 333; for Anil Kumble 10/74; for Brian Lara 400 not out, or perhaps 501, with another asterisk against the great