Book Name: Sanath Jayasuriya (A Biography)
Author: Chandresh Narayanan
Publisher: Rupa
Genre: Biography
Rating: 4/5
Book Blurb: Very rarely in history does one man shape the sporting fortunes of a nation. Sanath Jayasuriya quite clearly achieved that with just his forearms, but after a prolonged delay. He used his forearms
to just whip the ball at will and then turned his arm over with the ball to leave behind a legacy that will be hard to emulate. For a nation yearning to break into the big league, it required just the unorthodoxy of Sanath to break away from the past. When lights shone brightly over Sri Lanka
at Lahore’s Gaddafi Stadium in the 1996 Cricket World Cup, it was all down to the brilliance of this young man from Matara. While he made a name for himself as a rebel with a cause, he did change tracks later to take on roles quite alien to his nature as captain, chairman of selectors,
politician and minister. But while success proved easier as a foot soldier, the rise in the ranks was not always that profitable. This is the story of that man.
Review: Sanath Jayasuriya was one of the most explosive batsmen of all times and changed the game of cricket forever. The Sri Lankan team was perhaps one of the first ones to capitalise on the power play and take advantage of the limited number of players outside inner circle in cricket.
Chandresh Narayanan has pieced together this biography in a well structured format and has collected information from a variety of sources. A biography must never be partial and the detached writing sheds interesting insight into the life of one of the most celebrated cricketers of all time.
Like every cricketer, he has his quirks and share of superstition too.
“In many ways, these quirks were also a result of living in limited financial conditions. Sanath did not own a bat until he was eighteen.”
Growing up in relative poverty, Sanath managed to claim the highest ranks in world cricket and the mighty Sri Lankan team almost became unbeatable in his time.
The biography covers almost all aspects of his life including the brief foray into politics and his turbulent personal life. It also discusses the IPL years with Mumbai Indians and makes for an interesting read (Harbhajan’s slapping incident and its aftermath).
It is also accompanied by pictures and gives an overall view of the cricketer’s interesting life.
It is a very inspirational tale.