Book: Virat: The making of a champion
Author: Neeraj Jha and Vidhanshu Kumar
Publisher: Hachette India
Pages: 176; Price: Rs 250
It’s that time when the cricket enthusiast is completely engrossed in the World Cup and at such a time, to be reviewing a book on none other than India’s Captain Kohli seems just in the fitness of things. The book charts the story of Virat Kohli from age 10 up until World Cup 2019. The story begins from the day his father Prem Kohli took both his sons to a cricket camp in West Delhi on a hot summer day. We learn about Virat’s struggles at the U-15, U-17 and U-19 levels and the Ranji Trophy. We share his trials and tribulations as he gets selected in the limited overs format and then, World Cup 2011.
From then on, the going is just gravity-defying. His meteoric rise thereafter, in various tours home and abroad, capped with his appointment as test captain. All this ecstasy must necessarily bring some measure of agony in its wake and so we suffer with him briefly through the dismal English summer of 2014. Then comes the spectacular away Australian series in 2014-15 and a phenomenal 2016.
It is interesting to read about Virat’s travails as a teenager, trying to make a mark in the world of cricket. His passion to be the best in the world, his over-reliance on the flick shot early on and his childhood coach, Rajkumar Sharma, who was mightily against it.
Most compelling is the account of Virat deciding to play for Delhi in a Ranji trophy match against Karnataka on the same day when his father, his idol and mentor, has passed away in the wee hours of that same morning. Virat is instrumental in saving Delhi from a follow-on. Later in the day, Viratcries on a telephone conversation with Coach Sharma about being given out wrongly by the umpire!
Also interesting is how his U-19 coach Lalchand Rajput believes in Virat whereas Sanjay Manjrekar, is not so sure, initially. And how Dilip Vengsarkar, the chief selector, stands by Virat and offers him his first break. The book is brimming with statistics and his career in all formats of the game, including the IPL. There is an entire chapter dedicated to his fitness regimen, a key part of his success and details pertaining to his diet. There is also a chapter on celebrity brand Kohli, which appears a bit stretched.
Diehard fans will love reading who his favourite Indian singer is, as also his sports idols and learn about every tattoo on his body. The book also deals with the matters of his heart: how and where he met his wife Anushka Sharma and how, like all lovers, the course of their love too didn't run smooth at one point.There are plenty of quotes in the book by cricketers, past and present and commentators — Sir Vivian Richards, Ashish Nehra, Harbhajan Singh and Harsha Bhogle, to name a few. The technical aspects of the game are touched upon in a few places and there are some interesting adages about the game. The information on the yo-yo test is a good example. But these are few and far between. At times, the description about the different facets of the game seems pedestrian.
The avid cricket fan would have loved more insights into some of his pivotal innings, defining test series and the ups and downs in Virat's career. Disappointingly, there is hardly a mention of the England tour of India in 2016-17. Staunch Kohli fans will like the book but the ardent cricket fan will be left wanting more.
